A Portable DNA Testing Device for Conservation

该项目的目标是开发一种价格合理（每次检测低于1.00加元）且易于使用的纸质设备，能够在现场实时提取和鉴定生物样品中的DNA。该设备可以由未经培训的用户使用，而无需进入实验室设施，并且具有重要的应用，包括分析生物样本（粪便，皮肤和粘液）以进行实时野生动物检测，例如从野外遗骸中识别物种以协助监测活动，并检测非法贩运野生动物部分（特别是在不允许出口生物样本的地区）。我们将与合作伙伴加拿大油砂创新联盟（COSIA）合作，为加拿大濒危物种驯鹿开发这种设备，驯鹿的粪便颗粒通常与其他有蹄类动物难以区分。然而，这种方法很容易转移到其他难以捉摸的野生动物物种的识别上。该设备将为研究人员、环境管理者、土著社区和公民科学家提供一种具有成本效益的工具，能够产生物种的实时存在/缺失数据，而不需要复杂的分析过程。这将对国家和全球的保护科学领域做出重大贡献，并将对有针对性地监测受威胁物种非常有用。

The goal of this project is to develop an affordable (less than CAN$1.00 per assay) and simple-to-use paper-based device capable of extracting and identifying DNA from biological samples, in the field, in real time. The device can be employed by non-trained users without the need for access to laboratory facilities and has important applications, including the analysis of biological samples (feces, skin and mucus) for real-time wildlife detection, e.g. identifying species from remains in the wild to assist in monitoring activities, and detecting the illegal trafficking of wildlife parts (particularly in regions where the exportation of biological samples is not permitted). Working together with our partners, the Canadian Oil Sands Innovation Alliance (COSIA), we will develop the device for caribou, a Species at Risk in Canada, whose fecal pellets are often indistinguishable from those of other ungulate species. The approach is, however, easily transferrable to the identification of other species of elusive wildlife. The device will provide researchers, environmental managers, Indigenous communities and citizen scientists with a cost-effective tool capable of producing real-time presence/absence data for species, without the need for complex analytical processes. This stands to make a substantial contribution to the field of conservation science, both nationally and globally, and will be highly useful for targeted monitoring of threatened species.