The Air Force and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory announced the development of a DNA-detector that can be used to sense the presence of biological weapons:
The system consists of a spray, developed at the directorate’s Brooks City-Base, Texas, facilities, and a hand-held “green box,” which determines if agents are present. The green box, or DNA Capture Element instrument, was developed by researchers at the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. The box uses an Air Force-developed biochemical assay based on aptamers, or single chain DNA fragments…
With the prototype system, the user sprays the suspected contaminated area, creating a sample that can be picked up by a swab. The sample material on the swab is suspended in liquid by rinsing it in a container. Once in a liquid form, the sample is injected into a special flow cell, the place where the assay occurs.
We knew that the military was interested in developing this bio-weapon sensing technology as early as the mid-90’s (DARPA once approached one of our mentors…) An earlier effort was directed towards a “canary in a coalmine” approach — living tissue that would be transported around by soldiers, and show signs of insult before people do. It would appear they’ve opted for a more sensitive, and probably more reliable, technology.
More at the PNL…
(hat tip: Engadget)
