PROPOSAL NUMBER: | 06 T1.02-9952 |
RESEARCH SUBTOPIC TITLE: | Space Radiation Dosimetry and Countermeasures |
PROPOSAL TITLE: | Non-destructive Detection and Separation of Radiation Damaged Cells in Miniaturized, Inexpensive Device |
SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN (SBC): | RESEARCH INSTITUTION (RI): | ||
NAME: | CFD Research Corporation | NAME: | Temple University |
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ADDRESS: | 215 Wynn Dr., 5th Floor | ADDRESS: | 1947 North 12th Street |
CITY: | Huntsville | CITY: | Philadelphia |
STATE/ZIP: | AL 35805-1944 | STATE/ZIP: | PA 19122-6018 |
PHONE: | (256) 726-4800 | PHONE: | (215) 204-7808 |
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER
(Name,Email)
Shankar Sundaram
sxh@cfdrc.com
TECHNICAL ABSTRACT ( Limit 2000 characters, approximately 200 words)
There is a clear and well-identified need for rapid, efficient, non-destructive detection and isolation of radiation damaged cells. Available commercial technologies are expensive, require core facilities and use destructive methods. We propose to develop and demonstrate a novel fully automated, microfluidics-based device for identification and sorting of radiation damaged cells. The final product will be simple, small, inexpensive and fieldable in research environments as well as space. We will identify novel cell surface markers indicating radiation damage using a microarray (gene expression) experiments and verify downselected markers (protein upregulation) using fluorescent antibody tagged microparticles. CFDRC's proprietary dielectrophoretic cell sorter technology will be adapted for automated separation of the tagged damaged cells from overall population of cells. Proof-of-concept will be demonstrated by separation of damaged cells from an irradiated cell sample. Phase II efforts will focus along two primary lines. Surface biomarkers discovery will be further extended and validated. An integrated microfluidic cartridge and instrumentation capable of all operations (storage, mixing, sorting) will be developed. The prototype instrument will be demonstrated with both terrestrial and space radiation (in collaboration with NASA researchers/facilities). A multi-disciplinary team consisting of experts in microfluidics engineers (CFDRC) and radiation biologists (Temple University) has been assembled.
POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS ( Limit 1500 characters, approximately 150 words)
The end product of the proposed SBIR effort will be a first-of-its-kind, commercially available, compact, low-cost, integrated device for sorting of radiation damaged cells. This device will greatly aid in NASA's efforts to minimize radiation hazard, and develop countermeasures, enabled by fundamental understanding of radiation biological effects at the molecular and cellular level. The device will be of direct use to NASA's ground-based research facilities and amenable for space deployment as well (in-situ gene expression studies in space). In addition, the technology can easily be modified to benefit research efforts focused on other space-induced biological phenomena such as bone loss, immune modulation, oxidative stress among others.
POTENTIAL NON-NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS ( Limit 1500 characters, approximately 150 words)
It is also expected that the developed technology will find ready applications in the following civilian markets:
- Pharmaceutical and Drug Discovery Companies
- Pre-clinical and Clinical Researchers (in particular stem cell and oncology researchers)
- Hospital & Health Site Monitoring (for nuclear medicine, immune ex-vivo treatments)
NASA's technology taxonomy has been developed by the SBIR-STTR program to disseminate awareness of proposed and awarded R/R&D in the agency. It is a listing of over 100 technologies, sorted into broad categories, of interest to NASA. |
TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING
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Biochemical
Biomedical and Life Support Biomolecular Sensors Optical Particle and Fields |