BioWarn, LLC., out of Gaithersburg, Maryland, is announcing the development of the SmartSense™, a real-time sensor to detect the H5N1 flu. The company says that it has filed a patent application for the SmartSense system with USPTO.
Here’s a description of the technology that combines biochemical analysis with a silicon chip:
SmartSense Detectors = Integrated Circuits + Biochemistry
The SmartSense system detects and discriminates between multiple bio-targets. As shown in the diagram:Ligands are tethered to the SmartSense detector surface (a ligand is any atom, ion, or molecule that reacts to form a complex with another molecule, such as an antigen-antibody complex.) Target proteins interact with ligands on the SmartSense detector. Binding event signals that uniquely identify reactions with target pathogens are detected and recognized using either a binary result or a pattern-matching result from an on-board library of signal patterns. SmartSense devices can include self-contained power sources and perform immediate information relay via on-board network communications features.
The technology seems to be in a pre-prototype stage so far: no evidence of any products on the firm’s home page.
Company website…
(hat tip: MTB Europe)
