We are developing rapid tests for detecting the pathogenic vibrio bacteria in seafood. Vibrios are ubiquitous in the environment and are accumulated by filter-feeding organisms such as shellfish. When consumed by humans, vibrios cause symptoms ranging from intestinal distress to death. Standard tests for vibrios focus on detecting pathogenic genes, a method that can lead to false positives is time consuming, costly, and difficult to implement in a field-forward format. We are developing a technology to detect vibrios in their pathogenic in a low-cost, portable package. This mobile technology will allow for rapid and cost-effective food safety testing from the field to the table ensuring the safety of seafood along the supply chain. This project is a collaborative effort with Profs. Michael Shiaris and Michael Tlusty in the School for Environment and the Department of Biology at UMass Boston.
Publications:
C. Rodriguez-Quijada, C. Lyons, C. Santamaria, S. Quinn, M. Tlusty, M. Shiaris, K. Hamad-Schifferli, “Optimization of paper-based nanoparticle immunoassays for direct detection of the bacterial pathogen V. parahaemolyticus in oyster hemolymph.” Analytical Methods, 2020, in themed collection Bioanalytical sensors for real world applications, 2020, 12, 3056-3063.
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