• Fast-track development and availability of therapeutics and/or diagnostics to be used in the clinical management of patients infected by COVID-19 and/or future outbreaks of coronaviruses and to ensure that a variety of drugs are available for patients, including tackling resistance and combination therapy.

⇒ Organ-on-chip technology, modeling body barrier at the micro-scale, is a promising tool for new drug testing. It avoids animal models while being more physiologically relevant than conventional cell culture. It will enable the development of a variety of new therapeutics at a relatively short timescale (no need to obtain the necessary approvals for animal testing) and for lower costs.

• Contribution to the public health preparedness and response in the context of the ongoing epidemic of COVID-19 and/or future outbreaks of pan-coronaviruses.

⇒ To limit the propagation of ongoing and future coronavirus epidemics, it’s necessary to have a quick and easy way to diagnose these infections. The use of labs-on-chip makes fast point-of-care diagnosis possible.

• This will have a significant impact on global health, both at the individual and public health levels, by leading to results that have a direct impact on persons at risk of exposure to coronavirus or on patients suffering from coronavirus disease.

⇒ The therapeutics and diagnostic tools developed thanks to microfluidics will significantly impact global health, limiting the propagation of infection and allowing better care.