SBIR Phase I: A Near-Instantaneous, Whole Blood Immunoassay

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This Small Business Technology Transfer Phase 1 Project (SBIR) will contribute towards the development of a near-instantaneous, all-optical biosensing technology to replace ELISA-type (enzyme-linked immunoadsorbant assay) assays. Utilizing the unique optical properties of Metal Nanoshells, a new type of nanoparticle containing a dielectric core coated with a thin metal layer, immunoassays can be performed in the near-infrared region of high physiological transmissivity (wavelengths between 800 and 1300 nm) using Surface Enhanced Raman Scattering techniques. The equipment required to perform this immunoassay will be both highly portable and inexpensive. Initial research with a model antigen has shown that the nanoshell-based assay can produce results on whole-blood samples in 20 seconds. This is quantitatively equivalent to ELISA results requiring 24 to 48 hours. The proposed research will investigate the effects of bioconjugation of clinically important antibodies onto the nanoshell surface and examination of multiple Raman dyes for multi-antigen/analyte assays .The primary commercial application of the technology being developed in this project is in the $20 billion immunoassay market. The proposed research could lead to rapid immunoassay devices for ambulances, military and civilian health agencies, point-of-care analysis and high volume pharmaceutical testing. The core technology may have additional commercial applications in the area of biochips, in genomics and proteomics research, and in animal biology