A C. elegans-Based Foam for Rapid On-Site Detection of Residual Live Virus

Technical Report · Wed Feb 01 00:00:00 EST 2012

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/1035339· OSTI ID:1035339

Branda, Catherine S. ^[1]; Kozina, Carol L. ^[1]; Kaiser, Julia N ^[2]; Negrete, Oscar A. ^[1]; Tucker, Mark David ^[3]; Hardesty, Jasper O. E. ^[3]; Chirica, Gabriela S. ^[1]

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1. Sandia National Lab. (SNL-CA), Livermore, CA (United States)
2. Global Product Management, Hilden (Germany)
3. Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)

In the response to and recovery from a critical homeland security event involving deliberate or accidental release of biological agents, initial decontamination efforts are necessarily followed by tests for the presence of residual live virus or bacteria. Such 'clearance sampling' should be rapid and accurate, to inform decision makers as they take appropriate action to ensure the safety of the public and of operational personnel. However, the current protocol for clearance sampling is extremely time-intensive and costly, and requires significant amounts of laboratory space and capacity. Detection of residual live virus is particularly problematic and time-consuming, as it requires evaluation of replication potential within a eukaryotic host such as chicken embryos. The intention of this project was to develop a new method for clearance sampling, by leveraging Sandia's expertise in the biological and material sciences in order to create a C. elegans-based foam that could be applied directly to the entire contaminated area for quick and accurate detection of any and all residual live virus by means of a fluorescent signal. Such a novel technology for rapid, on-site detection of live virus would greatly interest the DHS, DoD, and EPA, and hold broad commercial potential, especially with regard to the transportation industry.

• Research Organization: Sandia National Laboratories (SNL-CA), Livermore, CA (United States); Sandia National Laboratories (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA); USDOE Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Program
• DOE Contract Number: AC04-94AL85000
• OSTI ID: 1035339
• Report Number(s): SAND--2012-0963
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES
BACTERIA
CAPACITY
CLEARANCE
DECONTAMINATION
DETECTION
EVALUATION
PERSONNEL
SAFETY
SAMPLING
SECURITY
US EPA