Researchers are developing computational elements and systems based on nucleic acids for use in biodetection applications. The elements are based on oligonucleotides (short single-strands of DNA) and deoxyribozymes (oligonucleotides that enzymatically act on other oligonucleotides). These elements are organized into information-processing systems as gates, cascades, amplifiers, and larger application-specific circuits.
Biodetection applications of the elements and systems being developed include gene expression profiling (in basic molecular biology research), human genetic screening (in public health), pathogen detection (in containment of infectious diseases in the field), and civil defense (in rapid detection of bioterrorism). The direct display devices the researchers are developing provide a read-out that is easy to interpret without specialist training and allows immediate practical decisions to be made; for instance, in the field, health care providers can select individual patient treatment, and public health professionals can select options for containment of infectious disease outbreaks.
Researchers are solving four practical problems. To reduce the expense of laboratory implementation procedures, they are studying oligonucleotide interaction models and devising libraries for modular circuit construction. To make the information-processing components interface to the relevant biodetection applications, they are building robust and selective biosensor modules. To make the visual display of biodetection results easy to use, they are experimenting with different display designs, with encoding schemes based on colors and patterns, including alphanumerics. Finally, to make the deployment of devices practical, they are establishing clear and easy to follow procedures for integrating with specific biological applications.
As a prototype, researchers are developing a biodetector for the class of mosquito-borne flaviviruses. The prototype allows identification of at least 11 different flavivirus species, among them the Yellow Fever virus and the West Nile virus, using equipment that is readily deployable in the field.
