DNA test goes on trial

BOURNEMOUTH, GREAT BRITAIN—The first DNA-based test that can diagnose a range of diseases within 30 minutes will be tested in British hospitals.

The test might help provide faster and more-accurate information for veterinarians and human doctors.

The test can determine the cause of food poisoning, detect foot and mouth disease and other viral and bacterial issues.

The portable mini-laboratory was created from biological research design that works by detecting the DNA of targeted organisms, researchers say.

The team of developers from the Defense Science and Technology Laboratory based the test on the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) process, which amplifies target DNA.

The tests will offer veterinarians a much-faster result than what currently is available at a lower cost per test.

Two rapid automated PCR machines will be provided to British hospitals in Portsmouth and Liverpool for the trial.

The trials of the "while-you-wait" test are backed by the Department of Health and are called NPT Gold.

The test can be used to detect genetic modifications in food and spot contamination by organisms, such as Salmonella, listera and E. coli.

Field tests will be conducted in animal diseases, such as foot and mouth disease and tuberculosis in cattle, eliminating the need to send samples to a laboratory.