BreFence Go, a breath test designed for Covid-19 detection with instant accurate results which has been approved for use in Singapore, is now destined to soon land on Malaysian soil. My EG Services Bhd (MyEG) has signed a Memorandum of Undestanding (MoU) with Singapore’s Breathonix Pte. Ltd. to bring the breath test system to Malaysia.
MyEG has signed an MoU with Breathonix Pte. Ltd. to bring the breath test system to Malaysia.
The breath test was developed by Breathonix, NUS spin-off startup founded by three NUS graduates, Dr Jia Chunan, Mr Du Fang, and Mr Wayne Wee Shi Jie, together with Dr Jia’s PhD adviser, Professor T Venky Venkatesan.
Dr Jia Zhunan (left) and Mr Du Fang (centre) of Breathonix with National University of Singapore (NUS) deputy president of innovation and enterprise Professor Freddy Boey. (Source: NUS)
This works like the standard breathalyser used by police to test if an erratic driver was drunk. A person blows into a one-way disposable mouthpiece, then the compounds in the person’s breath and breath signature are analysed by the breath sampler to determine the likelihood of them having Covid-19 – all done under a minute.
“Cross-contamination is unlikely as the disposable mouthpiece has a one-way valve and a saliva trap to prevent inhalation or saliva from entering the machine,” shared Dr Jia, co-founder of Breathonix, in an earlier interview with CNA.
Breathonix co-founder Wayne Wee demonstrates the use of the BreFence Go COVID-19 breath test system. (Source: Reuters)
Since the test is non-invasive, affordable, and able to generate accurate results within a minute, this makes it suitable for mass screening in high-traffic locations, according to MyEG. The test can also be administered by non-medical personnel.
For the breath test to be made commercially available in Malaysia, MyEG will apply for the required regulatory approvals and certifications which follows the MoU’s signing.
Once the approval process is complete, MyEG will be named as Breathonix’s exclusive distribution partner, providing them the right to carry out marketing and commercial sales of its technology and associated systems in Malaysia.
