By Liaw Wy Cin

IN ABOUT eight years, instead of popping pills over 10 days to clear up the flu, patients can have a blood cleansing procedure to get the flu virus out of their bodies.

National University of Singapore (NUS) scientist Tong Yen Wah, 34, has come up with a 'sieve' he is hoping will 'trap' viruses which cause diseases such as the flu, the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome and the Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome.

His sieve will contain tiny moulds specially shaped to recognise the shapes of viruses and catch them. By locking arms with these viruses, the moulds make the viruses powerless to infect the human body.

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