BioDetection Instruments, LLC Receives Federal Funding For the Development of Technology for On-Site Detection of Avian Influenza

Fayetteville, AR – BioDetection Instruments, LLC has received a $100,000 Phase I Small Business Innovation Research award from the National Institutes of Health. The project will develop an in-field testing device for rapid screening of AI infections in poultry flocks.

There is an urgent need for rapid on-site analysis that allows an AI-positive flock to be quickly quarantined to prevent further spread of the virus. However, there is no current detection technology that allows a technician to take a sample and screen for the AI virus with a single instrument. The proposed testing instrument will be fully automated and can be transported between poultry houses to assess the AI status of individual flocks. This set up would allow a single technician to screen multiple flocks within one day and could be incorporated into the flock collection procedure prior to transport for slaughter. The portability of the complete system would allow both commercial and family flocks of domestic birds to be monitored in remote locations and would enhance the ability to monitor and control the spread and mutation of pathogenic AI viruses. The development of this device would allow poultry production managers to rapidly comply with OIE (World Organization for Animal Health) standards regarding the identification of AI in commercial poultry operations.

Dr. Xiaoli Su, R&D Director of BioDetection Instruments, explains, "the AI detection device is based on the integration of patent-pending technologies exclusively licensed from the University of Arkansas, Ultimately, it will allow for isolation, concentration, and detection of a target virus from almost any sample source."

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