Israeli scientists are currently developing a biosensor that is capable of detecting viral pathogens by an electrical signal. The biosensor contains DNA chips that contain nucleic acid strands from a part of a viruses DNA, if the virus is present in the sample the DNA will hybridise to the sensor. The signal is then amplified and transformed, giving scientists an accurate measure of the concentration of the virus in the sample. The device would be useful in medical diagnostics as well as in the food industry, to quickly identify if pathogens are present in samples.
SOURCE/REFERENCE: Reported by http://bio.com on the 13th June 2001
