Novel Methods for Rapid Detection of Infection Agents and the Severity of Cellular Damage

Early detection of virulent infectious pathogens is critical to blocking the devastating epidemic spread of the pathogen and the potential harm this could have on our armed forces and general populations. In Phase I, we have utilized the state-of-the-art QuantiGene 2.0 technology to establish an assay for the sensitive quantification of SARS (epidemic spread in 2001) and assessing plasma DNA levels as a measure of the severity of cellular damage induced by a variety of insults, including infectious disease and radiation injury. In this Phase II, we will expand our assay to detect additional pathogens that are currently at epidemic levels worldwide. In addition, we will migrate from a 96-well plate to a chip-based assay platform containing magnetic beads as a reaction surface and portable sample processing/readout device. We will focus on two aims: 1) develop assays for the currently emerging influenza (H1N1) epidemic and tuberculosis; 2) develop a chip-based assay platform and portable device for use as an assay for infectious diseases in resource-limited conditions. The Phase II study will further advance our capability to develop an early detection assay for virulent pathogens and determine the cellular damage caused by all insults using a portable in vitro diagnostic device.