Team:NYU Abu Dhabi/Applied Design
We initially created the prototypes of our device that would allow the biological reaction for detection to feasibly take place. Once we had a developed a potential prototype, we conducted surveys in Indonesia and Pakistan, two countries with high production and consumption of street food. These surveys addressed street food vendors and consumers. Their feedback and input was essential in the first major additions and modifications made to our prototype. The surveys initially asked those that were surveyed if they incorporated any food safety practices to ensure the healthiness of their food, and most of them conducted at least some practices to ensure the safety of their food. Those that were surveyed showed interest in our device, and wanted the device to be portable, with easy-to-visualize results. They were willing to pay 63 USD, on average, and suggested having results within 2 hours.
Taking this into consideration, we decided to use Peltier Modular Cooling system with a 6 Volts, 1.5 Amperes external power supply adapter as a cheap and reliable heat source. The calculations for the cost of 3D printing showed that it was a suitable method for the creation of a portable and rugged device. We made sure that the microfluidic channels transferred the sample speedily, so that total reaction time would not majorly exceed the biological reaction. The device also contains a visualization window for easy interpretation of the results. In the future, we also envision the use of colorimetric dye such as hydroxynaphthol blue to visualize the LAMP amplification without the need of UV or blue light. Hence, our device is geared towards the consumer’s opinions, in being portable, cheap, and easy to operate.
The survey also asked individuals about their opinions and suggestions for our project. Most commented on how essential such a device was, because they realized the importance of the safety of food and understood the consequences of selling unhealthy food. They also suggested that the government should be involved in taking the necessary measures to ensure that a device for the detection of toxins is available in the market, and readily provided to street food vendors and consumers. To this end, we have pitched our work to startAD, a platform that supports start ups in the United Arab Emirates. With their support, we hope to refine our prototype and make it accessible to consumers, food vendors and governments to aid in rapid pathogen detection.
Disclaimer: The figure quoted in the video reflects the price of the device itself. The biological reagents are sold separately.
