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VA AND UCLA TEAM UP FOR RESEARCH ON BIOSENSOR
FOR URINARY TRACT INFECTIONS -- NIH award will
help team
develop a faster, more sensitive product to
test for infection.
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http://www.eurekalert
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uoc--upw091107.php
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Contact: Amy Albin
aalbin@mednet.ucla.edu
310-794-8672
University of California - Los Angeles
UCLA/VA partners with ASU to advance biosensor
technology for urinary tract infections
NIH award will help team develop a faster, more
sensitive product to test for infection
Researchers from the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, the
Veterans Affairs Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, GeneFluidics
Inc. and the Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University have
received a five-year, $3.2 million award from the National Institutes of
Health to help rapidly diagnose and treat urinary tract infections, the
most common cause of hospital-associated infection in the United States.
The initiative brings together academic and industry leaders to further
advance a groundbreaking technology, initially developed by UCLA/VA
researchers and corporate partner GeneFluidics, that allows for rapid,
species-specific detection of bacteria in human clinical fluid samples
using a microfabricated electrochemical sensor array.
Joe Wang, director of the Biodesign Institute's Center for
Bioelectronics and Biosensors, will join the collaboration to improve
the performance of the test by dramatically enhancing its sensitivity
and speed. Wang has more than 25 years of success in biomedical
applications and a strong track record of bringing similar sensors, used
for glucose monitoring, to the market.
"We are extremely fortunate to have Joe Wang and the Biodesign Institute
as partners in this endeavor," said principal investigator Dr. David
Haake, professor of medicine at UCLA and an infectious diseases
specialist at the VA. "Biodesign�s expertise will make it possible to
quickly bring the electrochemical sensor to clinical reality. Working
together, we hope to fundamentally change the way antibiotics are
selected for the treatment of infectious diseases."
"The goal of our collaborative effort is to develop all of the technical
components to produce a biosensor that can rapidly and reliably identify
a bacteria and its spectrum of antibiotic susceptibility to aid
point-of-care diagnostics for the clinic," Wang said.
Industrial partner GeneFluidics will help deliver a custom-built, fully
functional prototype, called PATHOSENSE, within the time frame of the
grant. At the conclusion of the grant period, the team hopes to work
with GeneFluidics for near-term deployment of the PATHOSENSE instrument
in multicenter clinical testing. "By combining our expertise, we will be
able to bring outstanding pathogen screening products to health care
professionals," said Dr. Vincent Gau, president of GeneFluidics. "Using
GeneFluidics proprietary electrochemical platform as the backbone of our
tests allows for very high sensitivity and for a streamlined system that
delivers antibiotics resistance results in record time, two hours
instead of two-to-three days."
The technology relies on the ability to detect the genetic signature of
a bacterial pathogen. The researchers will use 16S rRNA, a ribosomal
molecule found in all bacteria, to identify the bacteria species. The
research team will focus on enhancing the performance and validation of
the electrochemical biosensor assay and will develop an antimicrobial
susceptibility test to rapidly select the best antibiotic for treatment.
"Our mission is to create a new technology to solve an old problem,
which is the diagnosis of urinary tract infections, the second most
common bacterial infection, in a clinically relevant time frame," said
Dr. Bernard Churchill, chief of pediatric urology at the Clark-Morrison
Children's Urological Center at UCLA.
In current laboratory practice, pathogens in urine specimens are grown
in culture dishes until they can be visually identified. The major
drawback of this century-old technique is the two-day time lag between
specimen collection and bacteria identification. As a result, physicians
must decide whether to prescribe antibiotic therapy and, if so, which
antibiotic to use, all without knowing the actual cause of the
infection, if any. In contrast, the new biosensor technology would allow
physicians to prescribe targeted treatment without the wait.
Urinary tract infection is the most common urological disease in the
United States and the most common bacterial infection of any organ
system. It is a major cause of patient death and health care
expenditures for all age groups, accounting for more than 7 million
office visits and more than 1 million hospital admissions per year.
Catheter associated urinary tract infection accounts for 40 percent of
all hospital-acquired infections, more than 1 million cases each year.
The total cost of urinary tract infections to the U.S. health care
system in 2000 was approximately $3.5 billion.
The grant is funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious
Diseases, a branch of the National Institutes of Health.
For more than 50 years, the UCLA Department of Urology has continued to
break new ground and set the standards of care for patients suffering
from urological conditions. In collaboration with UCLA's eminent
research scientists, the department's internationally acclaimed
physicians have pioneered treatments for many conditions, including
cancers of the prostate, bladder and kidney; kidney stones; pelvic floor
disorders; genitourinary tract conditions; incontinence; and sexual
dysfunction in men and women.
The Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University is focused on
innovations that improve heath care; provide renewable sources of energy
and clean our environment; outpace the global threat of infectious
disease; and enhance national security. Using a team approach that
converges the biosciences with nanoscale engineering and advanced
computing, the institute aims to find solutions to complex global
challenges and accelerate these discoveries to market. The institute
also educates future scientists by providing hands-on laboratory
research for more than 250 students each semester.
GeneFluidics was founded in 2000 by Vincent Gau, who received his
doctorate in biomedical engineering from UCLA. GeneFluidics goal is to
develop a fast, accurate and simple testing system for improving
worldwide health. By integrating novel bio-nano and microfluidic
technologies, the company's revolutionary platform will enable complex
tests currently performed by skilled technicians in a laboratory to be
performed by anyone, anywhere.
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Larry Scott --
