New airborne pathogen detector
An Austrian company joins forces with a German specialist to develop autonomous lab-on-a-chip based detection system for the European Defense Agency
Linz, Austria-based Nanoident Technologies, a developer of printed semiconductor-based optoelectronic sensors, has joined forces with the German company ChipShop to develop an airborne pathogen detection system for the European Defense Agency. The autonomous lab-on-a-chip based system, called the PathoID-Chip, will be able to detect airborne chemical and biological agents. The system will be able simultaneously to test for multiple pathogens in a shorter time and with greater sensitivity than is possible with conventional test methods. Tests will be completed in minutes and will be repeated every ten minutes. Statistically, this is less time than it should take for a person to become infected. As a result, action can then be taken to reduce exposure.
To achieve these goals, the project will combine several novel technologies to collect a sample from the air, inject it into liquid, process it and perform an analysis on it. Other partners in the project include Clemens, Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institute, Joanneum Research Forschungsgesellschaft, and Bertin Technologies.
