Rapid Detection and Monitoring of Biomarkers for Traumatic Brain Injury

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Over 370,000 people in the US are hospitalized for traumatic brain injury (TBI) each year. In the US, the cost associated with the treatment, hospitalization and rehabilitation of TBI are estimated to be $48.3 billion annually. A fast, easy, accurate and effective test for brain injury is required to identify head trauma and monitor the progression of the condition. Once the primary impact associated with TBI occurs, rapid response is critical to limit the impact of the secondary damage due to increased cranial pressure and abnormal changes in ion transport processes. Neuroproteomic changes in injured patients underlie the complex molecular events that are indicative of TBI. The high- speed and high-immediacy assessment of these proteomic changes should permit the specific and sensitive diagnosis of TBI and continued evaluation of the condition. Radiation Monitoring Devices proposes to develop a compact, disposable microfluidic sensor that will rapidly detect a panel of multiple TBI biomarkers from a blood sample. To accomplish this, we will integrate silicon-based CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor) photon counting optical (GPD) detectors directly into a microfluidic chip which will detect target protein components with very high sensitivity using fluorescently label monoclonal antibodies. This high sensitivity is achieved by the placement of the photon detectors very close to the source of the fluorescent signal within the microfluidic channel. In Phase I, we will modify an existing microfluidic sensor to develop a test platform to demonstrate the integration of the photon-counting detector, and measure clinically significant concentrations of TBI biomarkers in model samples. In Phase II, we will optimize the design of the microfluidic system, develop software to run on a "palmtop" computer for data analysis and user interface, and measure TBI biomarkers in cerebral spinal fluid. The resulting device will be a general technology platform for the detection of multiple proteins in a single unit. RMD proposes to develop a compact disposable sensor that will rapidly detect biomarkers for traumatic brain injury. The sensor will simultaneously detect a panel of ten to twenty protein biomarkers that are used to diagnose and monitor brain injury. The sensor is based RMDs proprietary photon counting detector array technology.