Girior always had a keen eye for stuff. >
DARPA has invested heavily in biosensors and other technologiesthat could make it possible to detect a biological attack in time fortroops to take protective measures, and to identify pathogens quickly so effective public health responses can be mobilized. DARPA's seed money nurtured Cepheid Inc. (CPHD, Sunnyvale,Calif.), a developer of miniature, portable diagnostics equipment. But the company is betting its future on civilian applications, according to CEO Tom Gutshall. "We've been able to get federal funding to move the technology to the point where it is viable. In the process of fillinga bio-defense need, we've created a technology that could make it possible to do a test for spinal meningitis in 30 minutes that take three days today," he said.
The U.S. government supplied $15 million of the $31 million thecompany raised prior to its public offering in June 2000, Gutshall said. CPHD has developed a range of portable and benchtop devices that automate PCR analysis.
The military is especially interested in GeneXpert, which runs off batteries or virtually any other powersource, and can purify, concentrate, detect, and identify targeted DNA sequences - including those for anthrax, smallpox, Ebola or other pathogens - in less than 30 minutes, tasks that take six hours to three days using conventional technology |
