Development of lab on a chip for on-farm detection of sub-clinical ketosis

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This project will develop a tool that allows dairy producers to monitor cows' health on the farm in a way that was previously only accomplished by time-consuming lab analyses. It is estimated that the Canadian dairy industry will derive significant benefits from being able to use this technology to more efficiently detect and manage cow disease. The tool will be developed as a "lab-on-a-chip," a small device that can be used to perform the analysis of much larger laboratory instruments on location and in real time. This novel technology will be applied to measure the levels of a chemical called BHBA in milk and blood samples from cows. Increased concentrations of BHBA indicate health stress in cows well before any external symptoms are observable. This can be particularly useful in the period after calving when cows are vulnerable to infection and illness. Early detection of health issues allows the producer or veterinarian to intervene before the animals' production levels, or even survival, is threatened. Timely intervention not only improves cow health, but also increases profitability by maintaining high milk yields. Currently, conducting such tests would require the producer to send samples to a lab and wait for results. The lab-on-a-chip approach offers the advantage of allowing testing on the farm, optimizing convenience while offering immediate results. The project will be led by Dr. Suresh Neethirajan, principal investigator of the BioNano Laboratory, University of Guelph. Neethirajan and his research team will collaborate with researchers at the Ontario Veterinary College of the University of Guelph. The funding requested will provide a framework towards the delivery of improved dairy animal health management solutions in Canada and around the world.