Sandia Corporation

The University of New Mexico

National Technology & Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC

Sandia National Laboratories

Susan M Brozik

David R Wheeler

Ronen Polsky

Darren W Branch

Thayne L Edwards

David Bruce Burckel

Richard Smith Larson

David C Brown

Brian Hjelle

Marco Bisoffi

Shawn Matthew Dirk

Thomas Edwin Beechem, Iii

Jason C Harper

Xiaoyin Xiao

Pam R Hall

Dulce C Arango

Cody M Washburn

Viruses and other bioagents are of high medical and biodefense concern and their detection at concentrations well below the threshold necessary to cause health hazards continues to be a challenge with respect to sensitivity, specificity, and selectivity. Ideally, assays for accurate and real time detection of viral agents and other bioagents would not necessitate any pre-processing of the analyte, which would make them applicable for example to bodily fluids (blood, sputum) and man-made as well as naturally occurring bodies of water (pools, rivers). We describe herein a robust biosensor that combines the sensitivity of surface acoustic waves (SAW) generated at a frequency of 325 MHz with the specificity provided by antibodies and other ligands for the detection of viral agents. In preferred embodiments, a lithium tantalate based SAW transducer with silicon dioxide waveguide sensor platform featuring three test and one reference delay lines was used to adsorb antibodies directed against Coxsackie virus B4 or the negative-stranded category A bioagent Sin Nombre virus (SNV), a member of the genus Hantavirus, family Bunyaviridae, negative-stranded RNA viruses. Rapid detection (within seconds) of increasing concentrations of viral particles was linear over a range of order of magnitude for both viruses, although the sensor was approximately 50&#xd7;10-fold more sensitive for the detection of SNV. For both pathogens, the sensor's selectivity for its target was not compromised by the presence of confounding Herpes Simplex virus type 1. The biosensor was able to detect SNV at doses lower than the load of virus typically found in a human patient suffering from hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome (HCPS). Further, in a proof-of-principle real world application, the SAW biosensor was capable of selectively detecting SNV agents in complex solutions, such as naturally occurring bodies of water (river, sewage effluent) without analyte pre-processing.

Detection of bioagents using a shear horizontal surface acoustic wave biosensor

A patterned graphene or graphitic body is produced by providing a three-dimensionally patterned carbonaceous body; coating the body with a catalytic metal whereby is formed a coating having an inner surface proximal the body and an outer surface distal the body; and annealing the coated body under time and temperature conditions effective to form a graphene or graphitic layer on the outer surface of the catalytic metal coating.

Patterned structures of graphene and graphitic carbon and methods for their manufacture

A method for preparing an electrochemical biosensor uses bias-assisted assembly of unreactive -onium molecules on an electrode array followed by post-assembly electro-addressable conversion of the unreactive group to a chemical or biological recognition group. Electro-addressable functionalization of electrode arrays enables the multi-target electrochemical sensing of biological and chemical analytes.

Method for the electro-addressable functionalization of electrode arrays

A thin film with multiple binding functionality can be prepared on an electrode surface via consecutive electroreduction of two or more aryl-onium salts with different functional groups. This versatile and simple method for forming multifunctional surfaces provides an effective means for immobilization of diverse molecules at close proximities. The multifunctional thin film has applications in bioelectronics, molecular electronics, clinical diagnostics, and chemical and biological sensing.

Multifunctional thin film surface

A biosensor combining the sensitivity of surface acoustic waves (SAW) generated at a frequency of 325 MHz with the specificity provided by antibodies and other ligands for the detection of viral agents. In a preferred embodiment, a lithium tantalate based SAW transducer with silicon dioxide waveguide sensor platform featuring three test and one reference delay lines was used to adsorb antibodies directed against Coxsackie virus B4 or the negative-stranded category A bioagent Sin Nombre virus (SNV). Rapid detection of increasing concentrations of viral particles was linear over a range of order of magnitude for both viruses, and the sensor's selectivity for its target was not compromised by the presence of confounding Herpes Simplex virus type 1 The biosensor was able to delect SNV at doses lower than the load of virus typically found in a human patient suffering from hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome (HCPS).

A lithographic method is used to fabricate porous carbon structures that can provide electrochemical electrodes having high surface area with uniform and controllable dimensions, providing enormous flexibility to tailor the electrodes toward specific applications. Metal nanoparticles deposited on the surface of the porous carbon electrodes exhibit ultra small dimensions with uniform size distribution. The resulting electrodes are rugged, electrically conductive and show excellent electrochemical behavior.

Lithographically defined microporous carbon structures

Growing community of inventors

Albuquerque, NM, United States of America

Susan M Brozik