Technology Challenges in Responding to Biological or Chemical Attacks in the Civilian Sector

Abstract

Increasingly sophisticated technologies are needed for counterterrorism responses to biological and chemical warfare agents. Recently developed detection and identification systems are characterized by increased sensitivity, greater automation, and fewer false alarms. Attempts are also under way to reduce the cost and complexity of field-deployable systems. A broad range of decontamination reagents for equipment and personnel is emerging, but decontamination of large buildings, inaccessible spaces, and sensitive equipment remains problematic.

Co-detection: Ultra-reliable nanoparticle-based electrical detection of biomolecules in the presence of large background interference

“…In many cases, background interference could simply constitute the presence of non-target analytes which could not only produce non-specific binding events but also cause steric hindrance, preventing binding between target analytes with its specific recognition probes (antibody or DNA) 2 . Most of the reported methods in biosensors either aim to reduce the effect of background interference using pre-filtering techniques 3 or aim to boost the concentration of the target analyte using pre-concentration 4 or target-amplification (e.g. polymerase chain reaction or PCR) [5][6] .…”

Biochemical Transport Modeling and Bayesian Source Estimation in Realistic Environments

“…• Neumann conditions: Here we assume that the domain boundary is subject to (2) where is the normal vector at any point belonging to . These Neumann boundary conditions describe the hypothesis that the substance concentration is not affected by the boundary (normal flux is null).…”

Applying science and technology to combat WMD terrorism

“…An important part of the science-based culture is the use of peer review to help define requirements, conduct reviews at the scientific and program levels, improve our understanding of evolving issues, and communicate new findings. 3 Our early focus on biodetection followed an assessment of the challenges and gaps associated with counterbioterrorism. Because medical interventions are more effective when administered soon after or even before exposure to a pathogen, great value can be derived by detecting exposure as early as possible.…”