Toolbox/Intelligent Advisor for Creating Pedagogically Correct,

Respiratory infection is the most common cause of acute infectious disease in U.S. adults, the leading cause of outpatient illnesses, and a major cause of hospitalization for U.S. military personnel. The DoD is looking for a simple, rapid, sensitive,point-of-care test (POCT) and diagnostic tool, which can identify emerging strains of militarily important pathogens. Maxwell Sensors Inc. proposes to develop and construct a non-invasive pharyngeal pathogen sensor (PPS) system, based on a one-stepfluorescence immunoassay strip array, for respiratory pathogen detection and identification. The test based on throat swab samples is simple to perform, and fluorescence detection is highly sensitive. Unlike conventional membrane-based color immunoassays,which have poor sensitivity, the PPS system produces rapid and accurate results in a compact hand-held unit. An array of respiratory pathogens can be identified simultaneously.During the Phase I project we will investigate and select immuno-specific agents & materials, develop membrane strips for sensitive assay, construct a hand-held PPS system, perform bioassay, and characterize the strip and system performance. Physiciansrequest virology services, because nearly half the ill children seen by the primary care physicians have acute respiratory ailments. The decision to use antiviral agents or antibiotics can only be made on clinical and epidemiological grounds, if viraldiagnostic services are not available. Such treatment decisions are problematic because there is a significant overlap in the clinical syndromes caused by different infectious organisms. Therefore, a rapid diagnostic tool , which is sensitive and specific,is urgently needed.