Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Director of the Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology of Rospotrebnadzor Areg Totolyan in an interview with Izvestia told about the skin test for coronavirus developed in Russia. It was named “KoronaDerm PS”, passed preclinical trials and is currently awaiting permission from the Ministry of Health to conduct repeated trials.

The test is an injection of antigens to SARS-CoV-2 and is similar to the Mantoux test. The result can be assessed 72 hours after cellular immunity triggers the production of antibodies. A positive test indicates its presence, a negative test indicates that it is necessary to be vaccinated or revaccinated, the scientist explained.

“We see that some of those vaccinated are seronegative, they do not have such seroconversion (antibody production), but for some reason they do not get sick. I think if we had available tools for assessing cellular immunity, we would get an answer to this question,” Totolyan said.

The academician added that the check should become routine. He found that sooner or later an epidemic occurs, but a new infection may appear as a result of a rapid assessment of population immunity in order to make operational decisions based on scientific research.

Earlier, Professor of the School of Systems Biology at George Mason University (Virginia), Doctor of Biology Ancha Baranova said that the Russian Sputnik V vaccine, due to its design, turned out to be more effective against the omicron strain compared to its Western counterparts.