完整標題：A Military-Funded Biosensor Could Be the Future of Pandemic Detection 發稿單位：Defense One 發稿時間：MARCH 3, 2020 撰 稿 者：PATRICK TUCKER 原文連結：https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2020/03/military-funded-biosensor-could-be-future-pandemic-detection/163497/?oref=d-river If it wins FDA approval next year, the two-part sensor could help spot new infections weeks before symptoms begin to show. Why are pandemics so hard to stop? Often it’s because the disease moves faster than people can be tested for it. The Defense Department is helping to fund a new study to determine whether an under-the-skin biosensor can help trackers keep up — by detecting flu-like infections even before their symptoms begin to show. Its maker, Profusa, says the sensor is on track to try for FDA approval by early next year. 傳染病難以阻止的原因之一是擴散速度比檢測快 國防部資助新式皮下生物感測器研發，可在症狀出現前便發現類流感感染，爭取明年初通過FDA認証 The sensor has two parts. One is a 3mm string of hydrogel, a material whose network of polymer chains is used in some contact lenses and other implants. Inserted under the skin with a syringe, the string includes a specially engineered molecule that changes color when the body begins to fight an infection. The other part is an electronic component attached to the skin. It sends light through the skin, detects if the color change occurs, and generates a signal that the wearer can send to a doctor, website, etc. It’s like a blood lab on the skin that can pick up the body’s response to illness before the presence of other symptoms, like coughing. 主體是3mm的水凝膠條，身體開始對抗感染時特殊分子會根據身體的反應改變顏色，電子元件再通知穿戴者，可在咳嗽之類的症狀出現前就發現異常 The announcement comes as the United States grapples with COVID-19, a respiratory illness that can present in flu-like symptoms such as coughing and shortness of breath. The military is taking a leading role in vaccine research, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Mark Milley told reporters at the Pentagon on Monday. “Our military research labs are working feverishly around the horn here to try to come up with a vaccine. So we’ll see how that develops over the next couple of months,” Milley said. U.S. troops themselves are also at risk. A U.S. soldier in South Korea became the first U.S. service member to contract the virus, the Wall Street Journal reported in February. COVID-19是有類流感症狀的呼吸道疾病 軍方在疫苗研究中有領先地位 美軍也有感染COVID-19的風險 Profusa’s newest funded study, which the company announced on Tuesday, will test how well the sensor can detect influenza outbreaks up to three weeks before it’s possible to detect them using current methods. Because the gel doesn’t actually emit any signal, it wouldn’t give away a soldier’s position, so the sensor could be used in sensitive settings like behind enemy lines, Profusa CEO Ben Hwang said. 比起現有的偵測方法最多可提前三週發現流感疫情的擴散。不會洩漏穿戴者位置資訊 Hwang said his company has received grants from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA, since around 2011. “They gave us grant money to help our research and as we prove out a certain milestone, as we de-risk the technology, they give us a second phrase and a third phase and provide support,” he said. “Their support has transitioned from grants into these types of programs that create real-world evidence.” 研發公司感謝軍方長年資助 Hwang said DARPA is helping the company reach out to other outfits within the Defense Department that might use the device on troops or servicemembers. That could include partnerships with U.S. Special Operations Command, for instance, or, Indo-Pacific Command. He declined to comment on conversations with specific military customers. 跟軍方很多單位合作，詳細不便透露 --

※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc), 來自: 223.137.170.23 (臺灣) ※ 文章網址: https://webptt.com/m.aspx?n=bbs/nCoV2019/M.1583473076.A.E4A.html