ChemTrak will develop a simple and accurate quantitative test for cholesterol in whole blood that does not require the use of an instrument. Such a test would be of immense value to both medical professionals as well as their patients for both screening for elevated cholesterol in blood as well as monitoring therapeutic or dietary regimen to reduce cholesterol. A cholesterol test that can be performed by non- professionals would allow widespread screening and monitoring and can result in national reduction in deaths due to cardiovascular disease caused by elevated cholesterol in the blood. The research will test the ability to quantitate cholesterol over the range of 125 to 400 mg/dl in a test format that does not need an instrument. The feasibility of the test has been demonstrated over a wide range of values with serum samples.
