Diagnostics
Press Releases
Automated Microfluidic Device Reduces Time to Screen Small Organisms
(June 23, 2008) — Genetic studies on small organisms such as worms and flies can now be done more quickly using a new microfluidic device developed by engineers at the Georgia Institute of Technology. The new "lab-on-a-chip" can automatically position, image, determine the phenotype of and sort small animals, such as the worm Caenorhabditis elegans that is commonly used for biological studies.
New Technique Predicts Breast Cancer Chemotherapy Effectiveness
(February 2, 2009) — Chemotherapy is an integral part of modern cancer treatment, but it's not always effective. Successful chemotherapy depends on the ability of anticancer drugs to escape from the bloodstream through the leaky blood vessels that often surround tumors. Predicting chemotherapy's efficacy could save thousands of individuals from unnecessary toxicity and the often difficult side effects of the treatments.
Using Magnetic Nanoparticles to Combat Cancer
(July 16, 2008) — Scientists at Georgia Tech have developed a potential new treatment against cancer that attaches magnetic nanoparticles to cancer cells, allowing them to be captured and carried out of the body. The treatment, which has been tested in the laboratory and will now be looked at in survival studies, is detailed online in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.
New Class of Fluorescent Dyes Detects Reactive Oxygen Species
(December 15, 2008) — Researchers have created a new family of fluorescent probes called hydrocyanines that can be used to detect and measure the presence of reactive oxygen species. Reactive oxygen species are highly reactive metabolites of oxygen that have been implicated in a variety of inflammatory diseases, including cancer and atherosclerosis.
Georgia Tech Researchers Help Shut Down Drug Counterfeiters: New techniques developed to test suspected fake anti-malarials
February 13, 2008 — Georgia Institute of Technology researchers were part of a three-continent, multi-organizational effort known as "Operation Jupiter" that successfully identified and shut down manufacturers who were flooding Southeast Asia with counterfeit — and ineffective — anti-malarial drugs. Beyond the human health cost of failing to effectively treat hundreds of thousands of malaria cases, the fake drugs could be fueling development of malarial strains that may become resistant to the most sophisticated drug now available to treat the disease, notably artesunate.
New Biosensor Detects Avian Influenza Virus
Field-deployable unit detects virus in minutes, not days
September 27, 2007 — Quick identification of avian influenza infection in poultry is critical to controlling outbreaks, but current detection methods can require several days to produce results. A new biosensor developed at the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) can detect avian influenza in just minutes. In addition to being a rapid test, the biosensor is economical, field-deployable, sensitive to different viral strains and requires no labels or reagents.