In Situ Sensing System for the Selective and Sensitive Detection of Biological To

描述（由申请人提供） 全球范围内水资源中有害藻华（HABs）的日益增加引起了环境和卫生当局的警觉，因为它们可能释放生物毒素，特别是由蓝藻HABs产生的微囊藻毒素。 微囊藻毒素是已知的最强大的天然毒物之一。 接触微囊藻毒素会影响野生动物种群的数量和多样性，导致毒素在鱼类和贝类组织中的生物积累，并通过食物链间接影响其他生物，最终影响人类。 早期检测或现场/遥感毒素爆发的方法将为减少/防止接触有害生物释放的毒素提供一个重要机制。目前的监测方法采用现场采样，然后在实验室内分析有害藻华毒素（直接显微观察），既不可持续，也不实用，以满足巨大的空间和时间的测量需要。 另外，基于从卫星图像（间接宏观观测）确定标准颜色产品的遥感方法也可用于监测一般的水华活动。 然而，这种颜色产品既不是有害藻酸盐所特有的，也不一定是毒素释放的指示。 因此，必须以更可持续和更敏感的方式确定藻华的有毒/无毒性质，甚至确定有害藻华毒素的种类。 在研究人员努力寻找两种不同观察方法的互补方法时，他们建议使用创新的无线传感器网络实时监测微囊藻毒素的水平。 由于缺乏关于在适合于真实的现场应用的微尺度传感器上测定微囊藻毒素的知识，很少有人尝试实施原位感测思想。 因此，本研究提供了：1）新的方法来监测有害藻华活动过程中的毒素释放，2）新的想法，以定量和定性各种微囊藻毒素在痕量水平，和3）集成的方法来实现传感器网络适合现场应用。 研究人员的目标是：1）开创一种微囊藻毒素选择性光学传感器，以检测痕量水平的多种微囊藻毒素; 2）探索一种集成的芯片级传感节点，以自动执行传感协议; 3）开发一种无线传感器网络，以在传感节点和远程机构之间传递检测数据和操作命令。 最终，他们将在五大湖的一个潜在的赤潮现场部署无线传感器网络，以监测微囊藻毒素的时空变化。 公共卫生相关性：现场无线传感网络可以持续和响应地监测水资源中的各种致命生物毒素，微囊藻毒素，并将信息实时传达给远程当局，以建立早期预警系统，保护公众健康。 监测一般藻华活动可以了解“潜在危害”，而监测实际生物毒素释放可以了解“迫在眉睫的危害”。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant) The increasing occurrence of harmful algal blooms (HABs) in water resources worldwide is alarming the environmental and health authorities because of their potential to release biological toxins, in particular, microcystins produced from cyanobacterial HABs. Microcystins are among the most powerful natural poisons known. Exposure to microcystins can affect the number and diversity of wild animal populations, cause bioaccumulation of toxins in the tissues of fish and shellfish, and indirectly affect other organisms through the food chain and eventually humans. Methodologies for early detection or in-situ/remote sensing of outbreaks of the toxins would provide a major mechanism for reducing/preventing exposures to the toxins released by HABs. Current monitoring methods employing on-site sampling followed by in-lab analysis of HAB toxins (direct micro-observation) are neither sustainable nor practical to meet the vast spatial and temporal measuring need. Alternatively, remote sensing approaches based on identifying standard color products from satellite images (indirect macro-observation) are useful for monitoring general algal bloom activities. However, such color products are neither specific to HABs nor necessarily indicative of toxin release. As a result, it is important to determine the toxic/non-toxic nature of algal blooms and even the species of HAB toxins in a more sustainable and responsive manner. In the investigators efforts to find a complementary approach to the two different observing methods, they propose to real-time monitor the level of microcystins in-situ using an innovative wireless sensor network. Due to the lack of knowledge regarding assays of microcystins on a microscale sensor suitable for real field applications, there have been few attempts to implement the in-situ sensing idea. As a result, this study provides: 1) novel approaches to monitor toxin release during HAB activities, 2) novel ideas to quantify and qualify various microcystins at trace levels, and 3) integrated ways to realize the sensor network suitable for field applications. The investigators aim at 1) pioneering a microcystin-selective optical sensor to detect multiple microcystins at trace levels, 2) exploring an integrated chip-scale sensing node to automatically execute the sensing protocol, and 3) developing a wireless sensor network to communicate assay data and operation command between sensing nodes and remote authorities. Eventually, they will deploy the wireless sensor network in a potential HAB site in Great Lakes to monitor the spatial and temporal variation of microcystins. Public Health Relevance: The in situ wireless sensing network can monitor various lethal biological toxins, microcystins in water resources sustainably and responsively and communicate the information to remote authorities in real-time for establishing an early warning system to protect public health. Monitoring general algal bloom activities gives an idea on "potential hazard" while monitoring actual biological toxin release gives an insight on "imminent hazard".