DETECTION OF DENTAL WATER LINE BIOFILMS

长期以来，牙科综合治疗台输送的水的微生物污染被认为是不希望的，并且相当大的努力已经投入到研究该问题及其解决方案中。目前可用的技术能够提供卫生水，但许多研究表明，由于维护不善，大多数牙科综合治疗台被大量微生物污染，甚至不能满足饮用水标准。使用无毒的氧化还原染料和荧光探针，Lynntech，Inc.，提出了构建能够及时地测量每毫升10至10/6微生物范围内的细菌浓度的传感器。该系统将是完全自动化的，每天只需几分钱，只测量代谢活性细菌，并且可以很容易地集成到现有系统中。该系统每天向牙科人员提供水质反馈，能够在方便用户的时间内采取纠正措施，消除正常办公时间内的停机时间。目前的细菌计数技术依赖于缓慢，昂贵和劳动密集型的方法，自巴斯德时代以来没有明显改变。所提出的传感器将这些计数的成本降低100倍，并允许未经培训的人员在牙科诊所进行这些测量。拟定商业应用：生物膜在水环境中的发展对工业热交换器、水净化系统、食品和饮料制备以及医疗系统的性能产生不利影响。开发一种可以集成到生物杀灭剂控制过程中的快速自动化系统，对于处理这些数十亿美元的问题将具有巨大的价值。

Microbial contamination of water delivered by dental units has long been recognized as undesirable, and considerable effort has gone into studying the problem and its solutions. Currently available technology is capable of delivering sanitary water, but numerous studies have shown that most dental units are contaminated with large numbers of rnicroorganisms because of poor maintenance and cannot meet even potable water standards. Using a non-toxic redox dye and a fluorescent probe, Lynntech, Inc., proposes to construct a sensor capable of measuring bacterial concentrations in the range of 10 to 10/6 microorganisms per mL in a timely manner. The system will be completely automated, operate for pennies a day, measure only metabolically active bacteria, and can easily be integrated into existing systems. Providing daily feedback on water quality to dental personnel, the system will be capable of initiating corrective measure at a user-friendly time, eliminating down-time during normal office hours. Current technology for bacterial counts relies on slow, expensive, and labor-intensive methods that have not changed appreciably since the days of Pasteur. The proposed sensor will reduce the cost of these counts by a factor of 100 and allow these measurements to take place in the dental office by untrained personnel. PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATION: The development of biofilms in aqueous environments adversely affects the performance of industrial heat exchangers, water purification systems, food and beverage preparations, and medical systems. Development of a rapid, automated system that can be integrated into biocide control processes would be of enormous value in dealing with these multibillion dollar problems.