Determination of the Effect of Saliva on Functionalized Nanoparticles Used to Detect COVID-19 in New Diagnostic Assay Applications

Cytodiagnostics Inc.，位于伯灵顿，是一家以生物技术为基础的公司，专注于为国际生命科学和材料科学领域提供和开发纳米技术衍生的产品和服务。该公司的主要产品是具有各种表面功能的金、银和氧化铁纳米颗粒。这些生物缀合的纳米颗粒已被用作许多生物医学应用中的重要组分，从催化和体内肿瘤靶向到诊断测定，例如用于快速检测COVID-19的那些。官能化纳米颗粒呈现不同的光学和物理性质，这取决于它们的形状、尺寸（即直径）、表面结构和稳定性。为了评估新的纳米产品的表面改性的结果，有必要表征它们的尺寸，相互作用和稳定性。因此，这个拟议的合作项目的总体目标是确定唾液对功能化纳米颗粒物理特性的影响，这些纳米颗粒将用于在新的诊断检测应用中检测COVID-19。要做到这一点，需要在兰顿学院获得样品制备，成像和相关设备，以实现演示纳米颗粒的形貌，获得统计数据的图像，并调查功能化纳米颗粒的流体动力学尺寸和zeta电位的项目目标。成功的纳米颗粒研究项目将通过产生新的知识产权，促进新产品推向市场，并扩大其独特的产品组合，使Cytodiagnostics受益。预计这些福利也将为公司带来更多的就业机会。此外，这些结果有可能提高加拿大在全球纳米颗粒市场的参与度，预计到2025年将增长到74 B美元，并且由于COVID-19大流行而加速。此外，开发一种新的易于使用和快速的护理点测试将为加拿大人创造健康福利。

Cytodiagnostics Inc., located in Burlington ON, is a biotechnology-based company that focuses on providing and developing nanotechnology-derived products and services for the International Life Science and Material Science sectors. The primary products of this company are gold, silver, and iron oxide nanoparticles with various surface functionalities. These bioconjugated nanoparticles have been used as an essential component in many biomedical applications, ranging from catalysis and in vivo tumor targeting to diagnostic assays, such as those used for the rapid detection of COVID-19. Functionalized nanoparticles present distinct optical and physical properties, which are dependent upon their shape, size (i.e. diameter), surface structure, and stability. To evaluate the result of surface modification of new nanoparticle-based products, it is necessary to characterize their size, interaction, and stability. Thus, the overall goal of this proposed collaborative project is to determine the effect of saliva on the physical properties of functionalized nanoparticles that will be used to detect COVID-19 in new diagnostic assay applications. To do this, access to the sample preparation, imaging, and related equipment at Lambton College is required to achieve the project objectives of demonstrating the topography of nanoparticles, obtaining images for statistical data, and investigating the hydrodynamic size and zeta potential of functionalized nanoparticles. The successful nanoparticle research project will benefit Cytodiagnostics by generating new intellectual property, facilitating the introduction of new products to the market, and expanding their portfolio of unique product offerings. It is expected that these benefits will also lead to additional employment opportunities at the company. As well, the results have the potential to enhance Canada's participation in the sizeable global nanoparticle market, which is expected to grow to $7.4 B USD by 2025 and is accelerating due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, the development of a new easy to use and rapid point-of-care test will create health benefits for Canadians.