DNA Medicine Institute, a commercial organization focused on advancing human health through innovation, today announced it has been awarded a Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The contract is designed to develop nanoscale diagnostic technologies that facilitate whole health analysis in a single drop of blood. The Institute will develop assays for assessment of bone loss, immune function, cardiac health, liver function, and lipid status. The nanoscale diagnostic platform is designed to make hospital tests, currently performed on large machines with trained personnel, possible under any scenario. This includes confined space flight environments and other field settings where medical information is vital, but inaccessible. The Institute envisions that this technology will be used in conjunction with its Universal Blood Sensor platform designed to shrink a hospital testing lab onto a handheld, point-of-care device.
"We are pleased to work with NASA in developing technologies for monitoring crew health during space flight, including journeys to the space station and other manned space missions," said Eugene Y. Chan, M.D., President and Chief Scientific Officer of the DNA Medicine Institute. "This funding will allow us to develop innovations for diagnosing medical conditions in unique environments with minimal amounts of blood and reagents."
The DNA Medicine Institute was awarded a Phase I NASA SBIR grant in 2008. During this Phase I project, the Institute met key milestones for developing novel nanoscale diagnostic technologies.
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