Hoax busters: New rapid bioterror tests
Similar to using a fingerprint library
Researchers at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) National Center for Toxicological Research (NCTR) are developing a quick, cost-effective way to screen for and identify bioterror agents and other substances used in hoax incidents.
The testing method uses a technology called mass spectrometry. This technique identifies and quantifies compounds, based on the structure and chemical properties of their molecules, quickly and with a very high degree of accuracy.
The testing process works in a way similar to the FBI's fingerprint library for criminals. A researcher can take patterns generated by a mass spectrometer's analysis of a substance to be identified and compare them to a database of known substances, for immediate recognition.
Although other testing methods, such as DNA testing, are available, they are costly and involve lengthy processes that can delay by days detection of microorganisms that can cause disease. The new technique is very fast, taking about seven minutes for each sample on the mass spectrometer following three to eight hours of sample preparation time.
Although the new test can not distinguish living from nonliving microbiological organisms, the test can process a large number of samples rapidly. The per test cost is as little as $2 each, whereas DNA methods cost from $15 to $50 per test and take from 24 hours from start to finish including sample growth or culture.
The speed and cost-effectiveness of the tests make their use feasible for FDA enforcement work as well as for industry. Researchers found that the testing method could be used to distinguish biological and chemical samples of all sorts, addressing the analytical needs of the food industry, law enforcement and military authorities as well as regulatory agencies.
NCTR has examined the mass spectrometric fingerprints of a variety of chemical and biological materials that could be used in a biological attack. These include two types of food poisoning bacteria — Vibrio parahaemolyticus, (associated with illness from eating oysters) and Salmonella enterica, (bacteria often found in poultry causes gastrointestinal illness) — and inert substances such as flour and cornstarch. Mass spectrometry generally is used to characterize a pure substance. This use of this technique to evaluate complex mixtures such as bacteria or food is more novel.
NCTR is working with an industrial partner under an FDA Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) to commercialize the method for food manufacturing quality control as well as counterterror applications.
(Editor's note: A research article on the new tests is available on-line at: www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/fulltext/112693175/HTMLSTART.)
Researchers at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) National Center for Toxicological Research (NCTR) are developing a quick, cost-effective way to screen for and identify bioterror agents and other substances used in hoax incidents.You have reached your article limit for the month. Subscribe now to access this article plus other member-only content.
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