Mass Spectrometry Helps Fight Bioterror Agents

A quick, cost-effective way has been developed to screen and identify bioterror agents and other substances used in hoax incidents.

Researchers at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) National Center for Toxicological Research (NCTR-FDA, Jefferson, AR, USA) have developed a testing method for bioterror agents using mass spectrometry. This technique identifies and quantifies compounds, based on the structure and chemical properties of their molecules, quickly and with a very high degree of accuracy. Researchers can take patterns generated by a mass spectrometer's analysis of a substance that needs to be identified and compare them to a database of known substances, permitting immediate recognition, in a process similar to fingerprint matching. The new technique is very fast, taking about seven minutes for each sample on the mass spectrometer.

The NCTR has examined the mass spectrometric fingerprints of a variety of chemical and biologic materials that could be used in a biologic attack. These include two types of food poisoning bacteria, Vibrio parahaemolyticus (associated with illness from eating oysters), and Salmonella enterica, (a bacteria often found in poultry that causes gastrointestinal illness). Other inert substances, such as flour and corn starch have also been fingerprinted. The testing method could be used to distinguish samples of all sorts, addressing the analytic needs of the food industry, law enforcement, and military authorities as well as regulatory agencies. The study was published in the August 30, 2006, edition of the journal Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry

"Our new technique, along with fingerprinting, offers a rapid and valuable assessment of a range of bioterror and hoax samples,” said NCTR's Dr. Jon Wilkes, Ph.D., the lead author of the study. "We hope to see the testing put into place by government and industry in the near future. Anytime we can run tests more quickly, we can benefit public health and safety.”



Related Links:
National Center for Toxicological Research