Project Grant 20223353036902

PER- AND POLYFLUORINATED SUBSTANCES (PFAS) POSE A SIGNIFICANT HEALTH RISK TO THE UNITED STATES, SINCE THESE CHEMICALS ARE PERSISTENT, TOXIC, BIO-ACCUMULATIVE, AND UBIQUITOUS. PFAS ARE COMMONLY FOUND IN GROUND AND SURFACE WATERS, WHICH CAN LEAD TO ELEVATED LEVELS OF PFAS IN AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS. TO PROTECT THE SAFETY OF THE NATION'S FOOD AND WATER SUPPLY, MORE FREQUENT AND WIDESPREAD PFAS TESTING IS NECESSARY. CURRENTLY, METHODS TO DETECT THESE CHEMICALS ARE PRIMARILY LABORATORY-BASED AND THE RAPID METHODS THAT EXIST HAVE SIGNIFICANT LIMITATIONS. HERE, WE PROPOSE A RAPID, QUANTITATIVE, SENSITIVE TEST FOR PFAS THAT WILL DETECT MANY OF THESE CHEMICALS SIMULTANEOUSLY. THE TEST WILL BE BASED ON A COMPETITIVE IMMUNOASSAY USING PEROXISOME PROLIFERATOR-ACTIVATED RECEPTOR ALPHA (PPAR & ALPHA;), WHICH BINDS TO PFAS. THE IMMUNOASSAY WILL BE DEVELOPED ON THE LIGHTDECK PLATFORM, WHICH USES WAVEGUIDE TECHNOLOGY TO PERFORM RAPID, EASY-TO-USE IMMUNOASSAYS WITH A FLUORESCENT READOUT THAT IS DIGITALLY PROCESSED TO PROVIDE A NUMERIC RESULT TO USERS. THE PRIMARY OBJECTIVE OF THIS PROPOSAL IS THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN IMMUNOASSAY BASED ON PPAR & ALPHA; BINDING TO PFAS. ASSAY RANGE AND REPRODUCIBILITY WILL BE MEASURED TO ENSURE THAT THE ASSAY MEETS CUSTOMER NEEDS. THE TEST PLATFORM HAS ALREADY BEEN DEVELOPED AND IS USED IN LIGHTDECK'S COMMERCIALIZED MC + CYN TEST. THE TEST IS EXPECTED TO HAVE A LOWER LIMIT WELL BELOW THE ACTIONABLE REGULATORY GUIDELINES FOR THESE CHEMICALS. THIS TEST WILL BE USED IN AGRICULTURE, WATER UTILITIES, AND MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES TO ENSURE THE SAFETY OF THE US WATER SUPPLY.