New face mask prototype can detect Covid-19 infection | MIT News

Engineers at MIT and Harvard University have designed a new face mask that can diagnose the wearer with Covid-19 within about 90 minutes. The mask is embedded with a small disposable sensor that can be attached to other face masks and adapted to detect other viruses.

The sensor is based on a lyophilized cell machine previously developed by the research team for use in diagnosing paper for viruses such as Ebola and Zika. With new research, researchers can incorporate sensors into clothing such as lab coats as well as face masks, providing a new way for healthcare professionals to monitor their exposure to various pathogens and other threats. Showed that there is sex.

“We have demonstrated that various synthetic biology sensors can be lyophilized to detect toxic chemicals such as viral and bacterial nucleic acids and neurotoxins. This platform enables first responders and medical personnel. We believe that next-generation wearable biosensors for military personnel will be possible, “said James Collins, MIT’s Institute for Medical Bioengineering (IMES) and Thermier Professor of Medical Engineering and Science in the Faculty. Senior author of biomedical engineering and research.

The face mask sensor is designed to be active by the wearer when it is ready to run the test, and to protect the privacy of the user, the results are only displayed inside the mask.

Peter Nguyen, a research scientist at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University, and Luis Soenksen, a venture builder at MIT’s Abdul Latif Jameel Clinic for Machine Learning in Health and a former postdoc at the Wyss Institute, are the lead authors of this paper. , Will be displayed today Nature biotechnology..

Wearable sensor

The new wearable sensor and diagnostic face mask are based on a technology that Collins started developing a few years ago. In 2014, he demonstrated that he could embed the proteins and nucleic acids needed to create a synthetic gene network that responds to specific target molecules on paper, using this approach with Ebola. Zika Virus. In 2017, in collaboration with Feng Zhang’s lab, Collins developed another cell-free sensor system. Sherlock, Based on CRISPR enzyme, enables highly sensitive detection of nucleic acids.

These cell-free circuit components are lyophilized and stable for months before rehydration. When activated by water, they can interact with any RNA or DNA sequence, and their target molecules, which may be other types of molecules, to generate signals such as color changes. I can do it.

Recently, Collins and his colleagues have begun work on incorporating these sensors into textiles with the goal of creating lab coats for healthcare professionals and other people who may be exposed to pathogens.

First, Soenksen ran screens of hundreds of different types of fabrics, from cotton and polyester to wool and silk, to see if they were compatible with this type of sensor. “We finally identified a couple that is very widely used to make garments in the fashion industry,” he says. “The best was the combination of polyester and other synthetic fibers.”

To create a wearable sensor, researchers embedded a lyophilized component in a small piece of this synthetic fiber, where it was surrounded by a ring of silicone elastomer. This compartmentalization prevents the sample from evaporating or diffusing from the sensor. To demonstrate this technology, researchers have created a jacket with about 30 of these sensors embedded in it.

They showed that small droplets of liquid containing viral particles could hydrate lyophilized cellular components and activate sensors, mimicking exposure to infected patients. Sensors can be designed to generate different types of signals, such as color changes that are visible to the naked eye and fluorescence or emission signals that can be read by a handheld spectrometer. Researchers have also designed a wearable spectrometer that can be integrated into the fabric. The spectrometer can read the results and send them wirelessly to mobile devices.

“This provides an information feedback cycle that allows us to monitor our exposure to the environment and warn ourselves and others about the exposure and where it occurred,” says Nguyen.

Diagnostic face mask

When researchers were about to finish their work on wearable sensors in early 2020, Covid-19 began to spread around the world, so they soon used their technology to diagnose the SARS-CoV-2 virus. I tried to create.

To make a diagnostic face mask, researchers embedded a lyophilized SHERLOCK sensor in a paper mask. Like the wearable sensor, the lyophilized component is surrounded by a silicone elastomer. In this case, the sensor is located inside the mask so that it can detect viral particles in the breath of the person wearing the mask.

The mask also includes a small reservoir that is released at the push of a button when the wearer is ready to perform the test. This hydrates the lyophilized component of the SARS-CoV-2 sensor and analyzes the exhaled breath droplets that have accumulated inside the mask with results within 90 minutes.

“This test is as sensitive as the gold standard high-sensitivity PCR test, but as fast as the antigen test used for rapid analysis of Covid-19,” says Nguyen.

The prototype developed in this study has a sensor inside the mask to detect the user’s condition and a sensor outside the garment to detect exposure to the environment. Researchers can also replace sensors for other pathogens such as influenza, Ebola, and deer, or sensors developed to detect organophosphorus nerve agents.

“Through these demonstrations, we have essentially reduced the capabilities of our state-of-the-art molecular testing facility to a format compatible with wearable scenarios for a variety of applications,” says Soenksen.

Researchers have applied for a patent on this technology and are now hoping to work with companies to further develop the sensor. According to Collins, face masks are probably the first application that may be available.

“I think face masks are probably the most advanced and closest to the product. We have already made the prototype efforts we have to advance them to approved marketed products. I had a lot of interest from external groups that I wanted to do, “he says.

This study was funded by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency. Paul G. Allen Frontier Group. Wis Institute; Johnson and Johnson Innovation JLABS; Ragon Institute at MGH, MIT, Harvard. Patrick J. Adams Foundation.