Saliva Tests: How They Work and What They Bring to COVID-19

Universities and healthcare facilities are planning to use spit tests to conduct large-scale screening.

Written byAmanda Heidt

| 6 min read

COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, pandemic, coronavirus, diagnostics, saliva, LAMP, PCR, clinical research, testing

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ABOVE: A new test from Columbia University analyzes saliva for genetic traces of SARS-CoV-2 using LAMP. Samples that contain viral RNA change color from red to yellow.
COURTESY OF ZEV WILLIAMS/COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY

Faced with an ongoing lack of protective equipment and testing supplies, medical professionals have been seeking alternatives to accurately diagnose cases of COVID-19, a pandemic that has caused more than 11 million cases and more than 530,000 deaths worldwide. Supplies of nasopharyngeal swabs were some of the first testing materials to run low in mid-March, prompting a pivot to nasal swabs. More recently, saliva-based testing has come forward as an attractive, low-cost alternative.

The first spit tests are already being sold to consumers, with more poised to apply for emergency use authorization from the US Food and Drug Administration soon. While saliva can be a crude sample for diagnosing disease using traditional PCR, it pairs well with a ...

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Meet the Author

Amanda Heidt
Amanda first began dabbling in scicom as a master’s student studying marine science at Moss Landing Marine Labs, where she edited the student blog and interned at a local NPR station. She enjoyed that process of demystifying science so much that after receiving her degree in 2019, she went straight into a second master’s program in science communication at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Formerly an intern at The Scientist, Amanda joined the team as a staff reporter and editor in 2021 and oversaw the publication’s internship program, assigned and edited the Foundations, Scientist to Watch, and Short Lit columns, and contributed original reporting across the publication. Amanda’s stories often focus on issues of equity and representation in academia, and she brings this same commitment to DEI to the Science Writers Association of the Rocky Mountains and to the board of the National Association of Science Writers, which she has served on since 2022. She is currently based in the outdoor playground that is Moab, Utah. Read more of her work at www.amandaheidt.com.
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