A Diagnostics & Imaging Week

U.S. Genomics (Woburn, Massachusetts) has been awarded a Phase II contract by the Department of Homeland Security Advanced Research Project Agency (HSARPA) to continue development of the company’s biological sensor for biodefense applications.

Under an 18-month, $16.2 million contract, funded by HSARPA’s Bioagent Autonomous Networked Detectors (BAND) program, U.S. Genomics will complete technology and prototype development of its system for the detection and identification of airborne pathogens using its DNA mapping technology.

The contract award follows the completion on Oct. 31 of an 18-month, $7.5 million Phase I HSARPA BAND contract.

“The award of the Phase II BAND contract validates the success of our biosensor program and the considerable potential of the underlying DNA mapping technology,” said John Canepa, CEO of U.S. Genomics. “The resources provided under the second phase of this contract will allow us to move closer to the commercialization of this unique technology. Additionally, advancement of our DNA mapping technology under this contract has the potential to be developed for use in human diagnostics and military applications.”

U.S. Genomics’ DNA mapping technology allows precise “broadband” detection of airborne pathogens in an environmental sample. The technology’s readings are sensitive to the single-molecule level and yield very low false positive rates, the company said.

Using a universal reagent set that can detect and identify pathogens, the technology produces a genetic signature unique to each DNA fragment in the sample, and also identifies the organism from which the DNA originates.

Unlike other detection technologies, U.S. Genomics said its detection platform does not require amplification or the use of pathogen-specific reagents for detection of each threat organism. The approach also has the potential to identify genetically modified species, such as those that may have been deliberately engineered to elude traditional detection methods.