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Design, fabrication, and characterization of polymeric bioMEMS for the detection of feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV)

This project comprises the development of a novel polymeric BioMEMS device capable of rapidly detecting FIV in a minimally invasive manner. FIV severely inhibits the infected feline from mounting an immune response, and causes susceptibility to other types of diseases. Vaccines against FIV do exist, but have some strong limitations to their effectiveness; so early detection is the best method to combat the spread of the disease. Current testing methods look for antibodies to the FIV protein p24 in feline blood using established Enzyme Linked ImmunoSorbent Assay (ELISA) protocols. The focus of this research is to design and construct a device that can detect antibodies to p24 in a salivary sample by non-intrusive electrochemical means. The device is constructed upon a silicon substrate with gold microelectrodes coated with polypyrrole (PPy), an electrically conducting and biocompatible polymer. In the current phase of the research, the PPy deposition process has been optimized with regards to film thickness, uniformity and conductivity. Microfluidic channels have been fabricated using SU-8, an epoxy based polymer that enables the test sample and other solutions to pass freely through the device. The PPy will be coated with anti-FIV p24 antibodies that can capture FIV p24 antigens present in a salivary sample. Future research will involve the analysis of PPy/antibody interaction and its effect on functionality. The capture of such antigens will interfere with a reduction-oxidation (redox) reaction in a subsequently added ionic solution. This interference will change the characteristic resistance of the solution yielding a qualitative test for the presence of the viral antigens in the sample and hence determining the occurrence of infection.