COVID-19 PANDEMIC

USACH's Research, Development and Innovation against the pandemic.

From the various fields of knowledge, Universidad de Santiago de Chile, with the leading role of the Office of the Vice-President for Research, Innovation and Creation (VRIIC), has launched a series of initiatives aimed at controlling and better understanding the COVID-19 pandemic.

Instructions and protocols aimed to regulate the access to the campus of la Universidad de Santiago, as well as on site activities in the same.

These are some of USACH’s contributions during the pandemic:

  • Early detection in residual waters: The genetic material of the virus was identified through PCR. The advantage of this mechanism is that the presence of the virus could be detected in residential waters before the test is applied to humans. The idea was to design a mathematical predictive model for relating the collected information to public policies.
 
  • Advancing towards genomic sequencing. The university is working on the preparation for the genomic sequencing of the virus and the identification of its variants, while establishing the technical needs to undertake this task at the national level.
  • The Virology Laboratory of the Center of Aquaculture Biotechnology and Laboratory of Molecular Biology and Pathogen Control have collected more than 250,000 samples for PCR analysis.
  • The Leather and Textile Research and Quality Control Laboratory (LICTEX) is the only center in Chile that certifies face masks and shields.
  • The Mathematical Epidemiological Group for Epidemic and Pandemic Surveillance analyzes and publishes daily data on the evolution of COVID-19 in Chile.
  • The Center for the Development of Nanoscience and Technology (CEDENNA) and the Faculty of Medical Sciences developed a low-cost mechanical ventilator prototype.

SAFE CAMPUS

USACH’S RULES AND PROTOCOLS

COVID-19 is still among us, so it is important that you continue to protect yourself from infection. If we all take care of ourselves, we can keep our campus safe.