Innovative new flu test could detect virus using taste sensors in your mouth

An experimental flu test could detect the virus right on the tip of your tongue.

German researchers have potentially discovered a new way to detect the flu with an edible test, potentially like a piece of gum or a “thin film.”

When a person puts the test in their mouth, the chemical sensors produce a taste or not, signaling the presence of an infection.

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Scientists have created a tiny molecule that reacts only when the flu virus enzyme, called neuraminidase, is present. This is the enzyme that infects and spreads.

The presence of the virus in the mouth or saliva will trigger this reaction, releasing thymol (a flavor compound) and producing a strong taste. If no virus is present, there will be no flavor, the researchers described.

Scientists have created a molecule that reacts to the flu enzyme that spreads the flu virus. (Actual test not shown.) (iStock)

This approach could help detect the flu before symptoms appear, allowing the patient to take necessary precautions and avoid spreading the virus.

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“There is an urgent need for easy-to-manufacture, easy-to-provide, and simple front-line defense tools,” the researchers wrote of the study. “These tools could quickly help identify people at risk of carrying the flu so they can be quarantined.”

Researchers designed the test using computer models to respond only to flu viruses rather than bacteria or other germs, according to the study published in the journal ACS Central Science.

Edible test could detect flu before symptoms appear, researchers say. (iStock)

The sensor was tested in the saliva of hospitalized patients with advanced influenza. In these samples, thymol was detected within 30 minutes.

The experimental approach is still in its early stages and requires clinical testing to ensure safety and accuracy, especially at home.

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“Future clinical trials should confirm our evidence with patient-reported outcomes regarding taste sensations, differentiating the performance of our sensor at pre- and post-symptomatic stages,” the scientists commented.

“Future sensor designs could further reduce the number of sensors required or the time needed to perceive a taste sensation.”

The flu is currently diagnosed via a nasal or throat swab with over-the-counter options available. (iStock)

In a brief statement sent to Fox News Digital, Fox News senior medical analyst Dr. Marc Siegel said he “loves this idea, if accuracy can be verified through repeated testing.”

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As flu season approaches, the virus continues to be one of the most common and contagious illnesses.

Influenza causes about 52,000 deaths in the United States each year, in addition to 41 million illnesses and 710,000 hospitalizations, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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The flu is currently diagnosed using nasal or throat swab tests, which became available over-the-counter last year.