Accessibility Skip to:
  • Accessibility Policy
  • Main Content
  • Main Menu
  • Contact

  • -A: Font Smaller
  • +A: Font Larger
  • Reset Font
  • High Contrast
  • Low Contrast
  • Reset Contrast
History:
You are here:
  • Grand Challenges Canada
  • >
  • Innovations
  • >
  • 0213-01
  • Français
  • Get to Know Us
    • Who We Are
    • Co-CEOs
    • Governance
    • Accountability
    • The Team
    • Partnerships
    • Career Opportunities
    • Service Opportunities
    • Contact Us
  • Learn What We Do
    • What We Do
    • Global Health Innovation
    • Humanitarian
    • Indigenous
    • Transition To Scale
    • Innovative Financing
    • Innovations & Results
    • Annual Report
  • Apply for Funding
    • Funding Opportunities
    • Innovator Resources
    • Gender Equality Portal
  • Get Informed
    • News and Media
    • Blog
    • Publications
    • Subscribe
    • Photos and Videos
Grand Challenges Canada

Bold Ideas with Big Impact®

Browse our Innovations and Results
  • Get to Know Us
    • Who We Are
    • Co-CEOs
    • Governance
    • Accountability
    • The Team
    • Partnerships
    • Career Opportunities
    • Service Opportunities
    • Contact Us
  • Learn What We Do
    • What We Do
    • Global Health Innovation
    • Humanitarian
    • Indigenous
    • Transition To Scale
    • Innovative Financing
    • Innovations & Results
    • Annual Report
  • Apply for Funding
    • Funding Opportunities
    • Innovator Resources
    • Gender Equality Portal
  • Get Informed
    • News and Media
    • Blog
    • Publications
    • Subscribe
    • Photos and Videos
  • Accessibility
  • Contact
  • Français

Home » Innovations » 0213-01

Rapid and non-invasive diagnostic breath sensors

FacebookTwitterLinked In

Start Date: 01/04/2013- End Date: 31/12/2014


Project Lead(s): John Davis

Issue

Disease diagnoses that require microscopy or cell culturing are not ideal for rural healthcare clinics, where people often walk long distances and need to return home quickly.

There is need to develop tools that would provide an instantaneous diagnosis that is based on a simple, non-invasive breath analysis.

Such diagnostic tools would allow health practitioners in rural clinics in low- and middle-income countries to identify the best treatment, rather than making a fast or easy diagnosis out of fear that the patient will leave the clinic and not return.

Solution

The aim of the project was to develop a prototype, hand-held breath analysis system for volatile organic compounds (VOCs), similar to a breathalyzer used to detect alcohol consumption.

This breathalyzer would be sensitive to many VOCs with different responses for different molecules.

A patient would breath into the hand-held device, which would analyze the breath and determine which biomarker VOCs were present and in what amounts.

Outcome

The team worked to identify and develop the different components necessary to develop a working prototype of a hand-held breath analysis system for VOCs.

Photothermal spectroscopy provides a spectroscopic fingerprint of the molecule, which is unavailable using mass adsorption/desorption alone. This approach was used to identify VOCs on nanostrings, which were functionalized to capture target small molecules.

The team is now trying to combine functionalized nanostrings with photothermal spectroscopy.

They demonstrated that femtogram-scale quantities of the explosive molecule 1,3,5-trinitroperhydro-1,3,5-triazine (RDX) could be detected through a combination of nanomechanical photothermal spectroscopy and mass desorption.

Their measurement, based on thermomechanical measurement of silicon nitride nanostrings, represents the highest mass resolution ever demonstrated via nanomechanical photothermal spectroscopy.

The team also showed that the particular distribution of mass deposited on the surface of a nanomechanical resonator can be estimated by tracking the evolution of the device’s resonance frequencies during the process of desorption. This detection scheme is quick, label-free and compatible with parallelized molecular analysis of multicomponent targets.

The team was also working to miniaturize the device.

While the team was unable to develop a prototype during the grant period, they have received additional provincial funding through the Government of Alberta (Canada), as a part of the Alberta Innovates Technology Futures (AITF) iCORE Chair, and from the Alberta Innovates Health Solutions (AIHS) Collaborative Research and Innovation Opportunities (CRIO) to continue this project. 

Stay in touch with this innovator

  • Organization Website
  • Network Website
  • Innovation Overview
    Program

    Stars in Global Health

    Institution

    University of Alberta

    Institution Country

    Canada

    Implementation Country

    None

    Implementation Region

    North America, South Asia

    Priority

    Infectious Diseases, Non-communicable Diseases

    Platform

    Diagnostics / Diagnostics

Grand Challenges Canada’s programs are primarily undertaken with the financial support of the Government of Canada provided through Global Affairs Canada.

Government of Canada
  • Fluxx Technical Support
  • Privacy Policy
  • Website Legal Terms and Disclaimer
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and activity on our website. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may click on "Cookie Settings" to select the cookies applicable to your activity and disable those that do not. Please note that you will not be able to disable all cookies as some are necessary for the functioning of the website.
Cookie Settings Accept All
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
Save & Accept