We have diverse multi-disciplinary teams from more than 40 countries designing diagnostic tests to detect bacterial infections, but what will it actually take to win the Longitude Prize?

This infographic explains the most important criteria for teams to meet in order to be considered for the prize, from being easily used and accessible by anyone, to pumping out its results in 30 minutes from the moment the sample is taken. The winning test will help reduce unnecessary use of antibiotics and/or help medical professionals know which antibiotic to use when.

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The Longitude Prize test is one important means of ensuring that we do not return to the pre-antibiotic era when people died of simple infections and procedures which were tied to life-threatening risk.

The test needs to bring novelty to diagnosing infections; tweaking existing tests is not going to win the Longitude Prize. It must also be easy-to-use.

Better use of antibiotics means less resistance

The idea is that someone with minimal training could run this point-of-care test. We are not looking for a test that would be processed in a lab by a technician, but rather in a health clinic, at someone’s bedside in hospital, in a pharmacy, or even at home. A test designed to to tick the seven mandatory boxes on the right side of the above graphic under “A winning test must be...” should win the £8 million prize payout.

Which team will have what it takes?

• Is your team struggling with some technical challenges? You are not alone. See what one team is facing to make their test truly point-of-care.
• To find out about the teams, visit our teams page. If your team would like to be introduced to another team to explore collaborate, please let us know.
• To see winners of our seed funding awards, visit the Discovery Award pages.

Find out more about the prize and how to apply here.