SBIR Phase II: Internal Control Design for a Portable Cholera Pathogen Detector

小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第二阶段项目的更广泛影响/商业潜力是一种廉价的手持智能手机设备，用于快速检测环境水源中的病原体，如霍乱。目前的水基病原体检测方法需要3-5天的实验室程序。我们的替代方案是一个支持智能手机的便携式平台，离线工作，在30分钟内检测到病原体。当智能手机连接时，地理地图和时间戳检测结果会发送给相关利益相关者。这种新的和主动的检测方法可以使组织能够在社区感染之前补救水源。这一小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第二阶段项目满足了开发用于病原体检测的快速和便携式现场就绪DNA扩增设备的需求。第二阶段项目集成了一个聚乙二醇链接器，作为设备验证和确认的内部放大控制。该项目提出了一种新的检测设计，集成了聚乙二醇链接子，以消除额外的用户步骤，同时保持检测的灵敏度和特异性。该项目的技术目标包括系统工程，将内部放大控制转化为设备的硬件功能。该项目将推动用于检测水传播病原体的完全集成的样本到答案设备的开发。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project is an inexpensive handheld smartphone device for rapid detection of pathogens, such as cholera, in environmental water sources. Current water-based pathogen detection methods involve a 3-5 day laboratory procedure. Our alternative is a portable smartphone-enabled platform working offline to detect the pathogen in under 30 minutes . When the smartphone has connectivity, geo-mapped and time-stamped detection results are sent to relevant stakeholders. This novel and proactive approach for detection can enable organizations to remediate water sources prior to community infection. This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project addresses the need to develop a rapid and portable field-ready DNA amplification device for pathogen detection. The Phase II project integrates a polyethylene glycol linker as an internal amplification control for device verification and validation. This project proposes a new assay design integrating a polyethylene glycol linker to eliminate extra user steps, while maintaining assay sensitivity and specificity. The project's technical objectives include systems engineering of an internal amplification control into the hardware functionality of the device. This project will advance the development of a fully integrated sample-to-answer device for detection of waterborne pathogens.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.