Purdue University and Kansas State University Develop New Lanthanide-based Luminescent Assay for Detection of Foodborne Pathogens
Purdue University and Kansas State University researchers have developed faster and more accurate technology for the detection of foodborne pathogens in just January-February of 2020. The detection method employs a lanthanide-assay coupled with laser induced breakdown spectrometry screening.
Lanthanides are a group of 15 metallic chemical elements whose atomic numbers range from 57-71. These heavy metals can be linked to antibodies of various pathogens to produce strong luminescent signals using a time-resolved (TRF) fluorescent methods. The luminescent signals can then be translated and compared with a database to identify pathogens and toxins.
Kansas State University specifically researched the detection of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli detection through the use of lanthanide-assay laser method. A publication of the US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health on Lanthanide-Luminescent Assays says this method is “an attractive alternative” to traditional methods of detection because of its affordability, efficiency, and “amenable to automation”.
The University of Purdue’ s research was published in the February edition of Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry. The program expressed their excitement at the “acceptance of the intellectual property” of their research as it will “enhance the possibility of finding commercial partners”. The University research was funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service and Center for Food Safety Engineering as well as Hatch Funds which provide grants for agricultural research at U.S. land-grant institutions.
The development of lanthanide-assays is an important step towards the early detection of foodborne pathogens. Researchers even say that hand-held foodborne pathogen detection devices are potentially on the horizon at this rate of technological discovery. Researchers are hopeful that the efficiency, affordability, and accuracy of lanthanide-assay methods may prove to be a game changer in the prevention of foodborne illnesses which claim the lives of nearly 3,000 people every year.
https://www.thepacker.com/article/universities-develop-better-faster-foodborne-e-coli-detectors
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31896667
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15894006
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00216-019-02347-3
https://phys.org/news/2020-02-technology-pathogen-driven-lasers.html
https://www.thoughtco.com/lanthanides-properties-606651
