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Principal Investigator: Arantzazu Eiguren Fernandez
Organization: AEROSOL DYNAMICS, INC.
Fiscal Year: 2024
Award: $572,439
Funding agency: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
Project Summary
Respiratory infections are the most common reason for doctor visits and the third leading cause
of deaths. Viruses are the causative agents of most respiratory tract infections. Knowledge of
the transmission modes for pathogenic respiratory viruses is critical for improving mitigation
strategies that safeguard public health, but understanding their transmission mechanisms is
hampered by existing sampling methods. So far, no method has been recommended by the
public health organizations for the collection and detection of airborne viruses. The lack of
standard protocols results from the fact that no sampling procedure is appropriate for sampling
of all bioaerosols. During sampling, it is necessary to minimize inactivation of microbes, such as
incapacitating desiccation and destructive impaction upon collection onto a collection surface.
When collecting samples for detection of viral genomic RNA or DNA, maintaining the viability of
the virus is not necessary, but maintaining nucleic acid integrity is essential, especially for RNA,
which is rapidly degraded upon exposure to the environment. For assessing infectivity, the
pathogen needs to be viable. In both cases, gentle collection methods are required.
Although previous efforts have tried to separate virus-containing particles by aerodynamic
size, maintaining their infectivity during sampling remains challenging. Here, we aim to develop
a novel sampling system, the BioCascade, that will allow the collection of airborne viruses within
four different bioaerosol particle size-fractions: >10 um, PM4-10, PM1.5-4 and PM1.5 into liquid
medium, while maintaining infectivity of the viruses that are collected. In Phase I, we built a
BioCascade prototype. Its particle size-range cut-off and the collection efficiency of each stage
were modeled and designed by numerical simulations followed by validation through laboratory
experiments using National Institutes of Science and Technology (NIST)-certified standard-
sized particles. Its ability to collect and maintain the infectivity of bioaerosol was then assessed
using microorganisms that were representative of the size ranges that would be encountered in
bioaerosols. All Phase-I aims were successfully achieved. In Phase II, we aim to improve our
prototype by expanding its capabilities, such as a cold collection chamber for providing a better
environment for the collected pathogens, and a control system to maintain the liquid level that
enables increased sampling time to several hours. By providing size-fractionated air samples
that contain infectious pathogens, the Biocascade is envisioned as a powerful tool, not available
before, that can transform our current disease-control paradigm from a reactive approach (to an
outbreak after its fact) to a proactive approach (inform us the forthcoming viruses).
Terms: <0-11 years old><5 year old><5 years of age><Address><Aerosols><Affect><Air><Airway infections><Area><Assessment instrument><Assessment tool><Biological><COVID crisis><COVID epidemic><COVID pandemic><COVID-19><COVID-19 crisis><COVID-19 epidemic><COVID-19 era><COVID-19 global health crisis><COVID-19 global pandemic><COVID-19 health crisis><COVID-19 pandemic><COVID-19 period><COVID-19 public health crisis><COVID-19 years><CV-19><Cause of Death><Cell Body><Cells><Certification><Cessation of life><Chickens><Child><Child Youth><Children (0-21)><Clinical><Collection><Communicable Diseases><Communities><Coronavirus Infectious Disease 2019><DALY><Death><Desiccation><Dessication><Detection><Development><Disease Outbreaks><Dose><Environment><Environmental Factor><Environmental Risk Factor><Equipment><Exposure to><Farm><Gallus domesticus><Gallus gallus><Gallus gallus domesticus><Genomic DNA><Goals><H1N1><H1N1 Virus><Health Policy><Healthcare><Home><Hospitals><Hour><Humidity><Hygiene><Individual><Infection><Infectious Disease Pathway><Infectious Diseases><Infectious Disorder><Influenza A Virus, H1N1 Subtype><Intervention><Intervention Strategies><Knowledge><Laboratories><Liquid substance><Lower Respiratory Tract Infection><Lower respiratory infection><Measures><Methods><Microbe><Modality><Modeling><Monitor><Morbidity><Morbidity - disease rate><Non-Polyadenylated RNA><Nucleic Acids><Organism><Outbreaks><Particle Size><Particulate><Particulate Matter><Pathogenicity><Performance><Phase><Physical condensation><Physical distancing><Policy Maker><Predisposition><Procedures><Protocol><Protocols documentation><Public Health><RNA><RNA Gene Products><Recommendation><Reporting><Respiratory Disease><Respiratory Infections><Respiratory System Disease><Respiratory System Disorder><Respiratory Tract Infections><Ribonucleic Acid><Risk Assessment><Route><SARS-CoV-2 epidemic><SARS-CoV-2 global health crisis><SARS-CoV-2 global pandemic><SARS-CoV-2 pandemic><SARS-coronavirus-2 epidemic><SARS-coronavirus-2 pandemic><Sampling><Science><Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome CoV 2 epidemic><Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome CoV 2 pandemic><Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 epidemic><Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 pandemic><Social Distance><Students><Surface><Susceptibility><System><Technology><Temperature><Testing><Time><Training><Transmission><Tube><Upper Respiratory Infections><Upper Respiratory Tract Infection><Validation><Viral><Virus><Visit><age 5 years><air sampling><biologic><burden of disease><burden of illness><condensation><coronavirus disease 2019><coronavirus disease 2019 crisis><coronavirus disease 2019 epidemic><coronavirus disease 2019 global health crisis><coronavirus disease 2019 global pandemic><coronavirus disease 2019 health crisis><coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic><coronavirus disease 2019 public health crisis><coronavirus disease crisis><coronavirus disease epidemic><coronavirus disease pandemic><coronavirus disease-19><coronavirus disease-19 global pandemic><coronavirus disease-19 pandemic><coronavirus infectious disease-19><design><designing><developmental><disability-adjusted life years><disease burden><disease control><disorder control><environmental risk><experience><field based data><field learning><field study><field test><five year old><five years of age><fluid><gDNA><genomic RNA><health care><health care policy><health care settings><health organization><healthcare policy><healthcare settings><homes><improved><interventional strategy><kids><lab assignment><lab experiment><laboratory activity><laboratory assignment><laboratory exercise><laboratory experiment><liquid><living system><microbe pathogen><microbial pathogen><microorganism><mortality><novel><pandemic disease preparedness><pandemic planning><pandemic preparedness><pandemic readiness><particle><pathogen><pathogenic microbe><portability><prototype><respiratory pathogen><respiratory virus><severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 global health crisis><severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 global pandemic><simulation><tool><transmission process><validations><viral detection><viral transmission><virus detection><virus transmission><youngster>