The challenge
Detecting chemicals quickly
Fast and sensitive detection of contaminants related to product safety and quality can be a challenge for some industries in Australia.
For example in the dairy industry, current industry-tests to detect lactose or protease in milk can take up to a week and also cost milk processors hundreds of dollars. By creating a diagnostic test that can rapidly 'taste' or detect lactose in milk, this has the potential to impact the production line and the diary supply chain.
Our response
Point of care diagnostics for industry
Cybertongue is a biosensor that mimics sophisticated biological systems to detect and measure odours and chemicals in air and in liquids.
The Cybertongue technology is based on biological sensors, state of the art microfluidic technology and advanced photonics.
This technology platform can be applied to a wide range of markets, and is developed to efficiently detect and measure a range of substances including toxins, antibodies, enzymes, odorants, and other small molecules.
Cybertongue technology allows an array of biosensors to produce an optoelectronic signal when they respond to chemicals in the environment.
At the heart of the technology are biological receptors which CSIRO has engineered to signal via a change in blue and green light when they can detect their target in a sample.
The results
Industry applications
- Defence - detection of explosives and precursor chemicals
- Food and beverage - food safety and quality
- Health - disease diagnostics
- Environmental monitoring - soil and water quality
- Biosecurity - insect contamination in grains
- Civilian security - screening in airports
- Process control - chemical transformations in industrial processes.