SGER: Detection of Bioterrorism-Linked Microbial Pathogens Using Surface Acoustic Wave Liquid Sensors

University Of Maine, Orono ME

Investigators

Abstract

0233463 Pereira da Cunha Bioterrorism threats and attacks in civilian environments require sensors that can rapidly and accurately detect minute quantities of pathological bioagents. Selective and inexpensive sensors are urgently needed to detect pathogens in liquid environments, including food and water supplies. Conventional laboratory analyses are time-consuming, labor-intensive and inconsistent with the expedient response required in the wake or possibility of a bioterrorist act. The activities proposed in this Small Grant for Exploratory Research (SGER) are multidisciplinary and involve two faculty members from the University of Maine. Dr. Mauricio Pereira da Cunha, from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, will provide expertise in the area of sensor platform development in general, and acoustic wave sensors in particular. Pereira DaCunha is a 2002 NSF CAREER award recipient, who has worked for more than 16 years in the acoustics microwave area. Dr. Paul Millard, from the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, is a microbiologist with more than 15 years of experience in microbial detection and analysis. Both Pereira da Cunha and Millard are affiliated with the University of Maine's Laboratory for Surface Science and Technology, a multidisciplinary laboratory with appropriate facilities for the realization of the proposed tasks. The research activities described in this proposal are consistent with the purpose of the NSF SGER program. The research plan brings together expertise and research results from two separate but related areas, and moves both areas forward into a new, exploratory application that is highly relevant to bioterrorism threats, particularly in liquid and mist environments. Pereira da Cunha recently fabricated a successful Shear Horizontal Surface Acoustic Wave (SH) SAW mode device utilizing the new Langasite family of crystals (LGX). He tested this device in a liquid environment and has obtained preliminary results for proof-of-concept device performance. Millard has developed immobilized molecular padlock technology for nucleic acid recognition and amplification, allowing for the rapid detection of pathogenic viruses and bacteria in aquaculture. The proposed exploratory research combines molecular padlock probes for specific nucleic acid amplification with the SH-SAW sensor platform to produce an inexpensive hybrid biosensor to detect microbial pathogens in liquid quickly, accurately and reliably. Successful detection of these agents will justify the generation of molecular probes for detecting selected waterborne human pathogens that are likely agents of bioterrorism, i.e. enteropathogenic Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhi, and Vibrio cholera. The research will be conducted over one year, with the assistance of two M.S. students. Research results will be integrated with education through an NSF GK-12 program for area high schools, undergraduate courses, and an NSF REU program that involves university students from around the U.S. Research results will be disseminated through peer-reviewed journals, conference proceedings, and international symposia.