Advanced Sampler for Measuring Exposure to Biological Aerosols

描述(由申请人提供)：用于测量接触生物气溶胶的高级采样器为了改进对空气中微生物暴露的评估，并保护面临这种暴露的人口和资源，需要先进的生物气溶胶检测和传感系统。在本研究中，响应PA-07-318《职业安全与健康研究(R01)》，我们将开发和现场测试一种新型的液体生物气溶胶采样器，该采样器具有极高的浓缩率(高于100万)，同时具有低功耗要求。在该取样器中，空气中的颗粒带电，然后沉积在超疏水表面，小至105L的液滴将它们从表面除去。然后，可以通过各种技术对这些液滴进行分析，例如通过聚合酶链式反应来检测生物气溶胶的存在。探索性研究证明了该方法的可行性。在这个项目中，研究人员将改进新型采样器的组件，特别是颗粒充电器，并将准备一种现场可部署的采样系统，该系统将在现场广泛测试，以对抗领先的生物气溶胶采样器。新采样器的浓缩率非常高，可以检测到暴露在甚至低微生物浓度下--这是目前采样器所缺乏的一个特征--从而提高我们识别暴露风险和保护受影响人口的能力。这项建议响应了NORA的几个优先研究议程：国家农业、林业和渔业；国家服务；国家运输、仓储和公用事业。一旦开发成功，这项新的采样技术可以与各种“芯片实验室”集成，并可能导致对空气中微生物污染物的近乎实时的检测。这种先进的检测方法，加上采样器的小体积和低功耗要求，使所提出的工具不仅适用于职业和住宅环境中的暴露评估，而且还适用于国土安全领域。使用静电技术作为颗粒收集机制，与目前基于惯性的采样器相比，提供了另一个显著的优势：能够收集空气中传播的病毒和纳米颗粒。 与公共健康相关：在这个项目中，将开发一种新的工具来估计生物气雾剂的暴露，特别是其低浓度，并在现场针对领先技术进行广泛测试。这种新型的生物气溶胶采样器将具有非常高的浓缩率，从而大大提高我们在许多职业环境中检测空气中生物危害的能力。它将使我们能够更好地了解工人的暴露和相关的健康影响，并更有效地实施保护措施。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Advanced Sampler for Measuring Exposure to Biological Aerosols To improve assessment of exposures to airborne microorganisms, and to protect the populations and resources at risk from such exposures, advanced bioaerosol detection and sensing systems are needed. In this research, responding to PA-07-318 "Occupational Safety and Health Research (R01)", we will develop and field-test a novel liquid-based bioaerosol sampler featuring very high concentration rates (higher than 1 million) while having low power requirements. In this sampler, the airborne particles are electrically charged and then deposited on a superhydrophobic surface from which they are removed by liquid droplets as small as 10 5L. The droplets can then be analyzed by a variety of techniques, such as polymerase chain reaction to detect the presence of biological aerosols. The feasibility of this approach has been shown in the exploratory research. In this project, the researchers will improve the novel sampler's components, especially the particle charger, and will prepare a field-deployable sampling system which will be extensively tested in the field against leading bioaerosol samplers. Very high concentration rates of the new sampler will allow detecting exposures to even low microorganism concentrations - a feature lacking in current samplers - thus improving our ability to identify the exposure risks and protect affected populations. This proposal responds to several NORA's Priority Research Agendas: National Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishing; National Services; National Transportation, Warehousing, and Utilities. Upon successful development, this novel sampling technology could be integrated with various "laboratories on a chip" and may lead to near real-time determination of airborne microbial contaminants. Such advanced detection method, plus sampler's small size and low power requirements would make the proposed tool suitable for numerous applications not only for exposure assessment in occupational and residential environments, but also in Homeland security area. Use of electrostatic technique as a particle collection mechanism offers another significant advantage over current inertia- based samplers: ability to collect airborne viruses and nanoparticles. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: In this project, a novel tool to estimate exposures to biological aerosols, especially to their low concentrations, will be developed and extensively tested in the field against leading technologies. This novel bioaerosol sampler will have very high concentration rate allowing to substantially improve our ability to detect airborne biological hazards in many occupational environments. It will allow us to better understand workers' exposures and related health effects and to implement protective measures more effectively.