A radical proposal by an Aberystwyth biochemistry student for a portable test to detect TB in humans has won the top prize in The Telegraph STEM Awards 2019.

Eleanor Wilson came up with the idea of using the CRISPR gene editing platform to diagnose TB in humans during the third year of her MBiol degree at Aberystwyth’s Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences (IBERS).

Selected from a field of over 10,000 entrants for this year’s prestigious award, Eleanor initially won the Healthcare category of the awards in April 2019.

A month later, she was named overall winner across all five categories of The Telegraph STEM Awards at a special ceremony in London picking up a prize of £25,000 as well as bespoke work placement with global healthcare company GSK.

Speaking about her submission, Eleanor said: “I think CRISPR gene editing has huge diagnostic potential - but we currently diagnose disease in a similar way that we did in the 20th century, largely by looking at symptoms.”

Her solution proposes a portable device equipped with CRISPR technology, which produces visual results – much like a pregnancy test.

“You don’t need trained laboratory staff or facilities to administer it, it’s easily transportable and relatively cheap,” says Eleanor.

“For rural settings, you could transport multiple kits via drones.”

See this week’s south papers for the full story, available in shops and as a digital edition on Wednesday