SBIR Phase I: Autonomous Sensor Network to Manage West Nile Virus Epidemics

这个小型企业创新研究计划项目将结合野外捕捉器层面上的采血雌性蚊子的自动化数据收集和处理，使用纳米级传感器来检测和量化西尼罗河病毒，识别蚊子的种类和它们血粉的宿主来源(S)(S)。这个第一阶段的项目将证明制造用于两条生产线的WNV-antibody-functionalized-conducting-nanosensors的可行性。产品线之一将包括非常便宜和强大的手持西尼罗河病毒检测工具，用于对相关生物样本(血液、唾液、拭子和蚊子)进行实时诊断。产品线二将包括独立的、自主/自动化的病原体检测单元，这些单元将被整合到蚊子采样设备中，这些设备将在诱捕器水平上提供蚊子样本的自主操作、制备和测试。这些自动化装置允许在无人值守的情况下处理大量现场样本，从而提高了病原体、病媒和流行病检测的能力，而不依赖于区域的可访问性。数据被传输到Monitor互联网数据管理系统，自动汇总、分析、生成报告并分发给感兴趣的客户。多路传输纳米传感器阵列将允许一次通过收集大量重要的流行病学信息，例如病原体的存在、蚊子采血的宿主的ID(哺乳动物、鸟类，更具体地说是牛、狗、人类、鸡、乌鸦等)。及早发现是预防流行病的唯一形式。该项目提出了一个颠覆性的概念，以填补病媒管理方面的巨大空白，目前病媒管理缺乏快速有效的数据收集技术。西尼罗河病毒检测-仪器缓慢、昂贵、笨重，需要人工干预和实验室条件，有大量的消耗品和能量，并且不适合无人值守的自主操作，导致在疾病或流行病蔓延之前实际检测到的引入病原体只有很小一部分。病媒控制人员和流行病学家依赖耗时的人工蚊媒管理方法，这些方法往往来得太晚，无法预防流行病，需要昂贵的补救行动，如在整个地区进行地毯式喷洒杀虫剂，这是低效的、对生态有害的，并有助于产生杀虫剂抗药性。最终，该团队将把产生的纳米电子传感器集成到自主智能机器人设备中，这些设备能够持续监测现场病媒和污染物的存在，并将数据无线传输到中央枢纽，为决策者提供现场条件的实时情报。如果成功，这将允许采取预防性控制行动，而不是危机或补救措施。这不仅对病媒和疾病管理有用，而且对国土安全、卫生保健、农业环境领域和食品安全市场的生物检测也很有用，所有市场的保守评估为每年2美元。

This Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR) project will combine automated data gathering and processing of blood-fed-female mosquitoes in the field, at the traps level, using nanoscale sensors to detect and quantify West-Nile-Virus (WNV), identify the mosquito species and the host source(s) of their blood meal(s). This Phase I project will demonstrate feasibility of fabrication of WNV-antibody-functionalized-conducting-nanosensors for use in two lines of products. Product-line-one will consist of very-inexpensive-and-robust hand-held WNV-detection-tool for real-time diagnosis of relevant biological samples (blood, saliva, swabs, and mosquitoes). Product-line-two will consist of self contained, autonomous/automated field worthy pathogen detection units to be incorporated into mosquito sampling devices which will provide autonomous manipulation, preparation, and testing of mosquito samples at trap level. These automated units permit the unattended processing of large number of field samples, thus increasing the capacity of pathogen, vector and epidemics detection independent of area accessibility. Data are transferred to Monitor Internet Data Management System, autonomously aggregated, analyzed, reports generated and distributed to interested clients. Multiplexing the nanosensory-array will allow for single pass collection of a host of important epidemiological information, such as presence of disease-agents, ID of the host from which the mosquitoes took their blood (mammals, birds, more specifically cattle, dogs, humans, chickens, corvide, etc...). Early detection is the only form to prevent epidemics. This project proposes a disruptive concept to fill an enormous gap in vector-management, which now lacks technologies for speedy and effective data collection. WNV-detection-instruments are slow, expensive, bulky, require human interference and laboratory conditions with plenty of consumables and energy, and not amenable to unattended autonomous operation, resulting in only a very small portion of introduced pathogens actually being detected before disease or epidemics become widespread. Vector-control personnel and epidemiologists rely on time-consuming, manual mosquito vector management methods that often come too-late-to-prevent epidemics and require expensive remedial actions, such as blanket spraying of insecticides on entire regions, which is inefficient, ecologically harmful and conducive to pesticide resistance. Ultimately the team will integrate the resulting nanoelectronic-sensors into autonomous-smart-robotic-devices capable of continuously monitor for the presence of vectors and contaminants in-field and wirelessly transfer data to a centralized hub, providing decision-makers with real-time intelligence of field conditions. If successful this will allow preventative rather than crisis or remedial control actions. This will be useful not only for vector and disease management but also for bio-detection in the homeland security, health care, agro-environmental field and food safety markets, all markets conservatively evaluated at $2Bi/yr.