New Delhi, Oct 16 (IANS): Scientists on Wednesday reported a new blood test that can diagnose heart attacks in minutes rather than hours, and could be adapted as a tool for first responders and people at home.

Developed by researchers at Johns Hopkins University in the US, the stand-alone blood test provides results in five to seven minutes. It’s also more accurate and more affordable than current methods.

Peng Zheng and his team created a tiny chip with a groundbreaking nanostructured surface on which blood is tested.

“We were able to invent a new technology that can quickly and accurately establish if someone is having a heart attack,” said Zheng, an assistant research scientist at Johns Hopkins.

The proof-of-concept work, which can be modified to detect infectious diseases and cancer biomarkers, has been published in the journal Advanced Science.

Though created for speedy diagnostic work in a clinical setting, the test could be adapted as a hand-held tool that first responders could use in the field, or that people might even be able to use themselves at home.

The chip’s “metasurface” enhances electric and magnetic signals during Raman spectroscopy analysis, making heart attack biomarkers visible in seconds, even in ultra-low concentrations.

The tool is sensitive enough to flag heart attack biomarkers that might not be detected at all with current tests, or not detected until much later in an attack.

Though designed to diagnose heart attacks, the tool could be adapted to detect cancer and infectious diseases, the researchers said.

“We’re talking about speed, we’re talking about accuracy, and we’re talking of the ability to perform measurements outside of a hospital,” said senior author Ishan Barman, a bioengineer in the Department of Mechanical Engineering.

“There is enormous commercial potential,” Barman said. “There’s nothing that limits this platform technology.” The team now plans to refine the blood test and explore larger clinical trials.