Footwear reflectors get a new life in detecting bioterror threats
Tiny versions of the reflectors used on trainers to ensure the safety of runners at night are moving towards another role in detecting bioterrorism threats and diagnosing infectious diseases.
A report on progress in using retroreflectors was on the agenda of the recent 245th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society.
"Our goal is the development of an ultrasensitive, all-in-one device that can quickly tell first-responders exactly which disease-causing microbe has been used in a bioterrorism attack," said Richard Willson, leader of the research. "The availability of an instrument capable of detecting several agents simultaneously would greatly enhance our response to a possible bioterror attack or the emergence of a disease not often seen here."
Mr Willson's team is developing another version of the technology intended for use in doctors' offices and clinics for rapid diagnosis of common infectious diseases before patients leave. Eliminating the need to wait for test results from an outside laboratory could allow patients to get the right treatment sooner, Willson noted. One of those tests focuses on detecting norovirus, the "winter vomiting virus”.
