August 26, 2005
Applied BioPhysics, an analytical instrument manufacturer in Troy, NY, and Agave BioSystems, a biotechnology company designing miniature lab-scale diagnostic instrumentation located in Ithaca, NY, have signed a cooperative agreement that will adapt Electric Cell-substrate Impedance Sensing (ECIS) technology for detection of airborne chemical and biological agents.
The hybrid system will combine respiratory endothelial cells as a broad and highly sensitive detector with air samplers and microfluidic technology for continuous monitoring of the environment with the ECIS biosensor.
Additionally, Agave BioSystems is using the ECIS technology for water monitoring applications and has shown effective detection of a wide variety of chemical toxins independent of their mechanism of action.
The development of this system is under contract by the U.S. Army Center for Environmental Health Research and is being developed to combat biowarfare and agents of bioterrorism as well as for the monitoring of toxic environmental pollutants. The development of this approach will ultimately have broad application in the food, environmental and medical industries as well.