Grand Challenges in Global Health has awarded $30 million for the creation of diagnostic tools for use in the developing world. These devices will be designed to assess illnesses and health risks while patients are still at a health care setting. Developing lower cost, easier to use diagnostics will help increase access to health care in resource-poor areas.
Donald Chickering and a team at Seventh Sense Biosystems in the U.S. are developing a one-step blood collection using microneedles and a vacuum to capture a blood sample for analysis.
Robert (Bruce) Cary of Mesa Tech International, Inc. in the U.S. is creating a nucleic acid purification system to provide purified patient samples within minutes without user intervention, instrumentation, electricity or costly materials.
David Beebe and researchers at the University of Wisconsin in the U.S. are developing a sample purification system that uses a wax or oil barrier to filter and concentrate biomarkers from a patient sample. This system will be adaptable to a variety of sample collection and detection components.
Ross Durland and colleagues at AM Biotechnologies, LLC in the U.S. are creating modified nucleic acids called X-aptamers that can detect and quantify protein biomarkers in a patient sample while remaining stable at high temperature and humidity.