May 29, 2007 — NanoLogix, Inc. has filed a total of five patents (two U.S., two provisional U.S. and one international) for its BioNanoChannel technology for rapid bacterial detection and identification. This approach allows for the identification of bacteria strains in minutes to hours instead of one or more days for conventional methods.

The BioNanoChannel technology use 2- to 25-micron channels to trap bacteria and then applies proprietary NanoLogix techniques covered in the patent applications to detect and or identify bacteria in extremely small concentrations down to a single cell. The technology is reportedly simple and user-friendly, and doesn’t require sophisticated optoelectronic equipment — and is applicable to a large number of different liquid, solid, and bioaerosol samples.

One advantage the BioNanoChannel has over competing technologies such as PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) is its ability to determine whether the spores or cells are still alive, which is critical for decontamination.

NanoLogix is currently finalizing the tooling for the first production run of the BioNanoChannel device. The apparatus, excluding a microscope, can be held in one’s hand. In addition to medical applications, there are similar needs in the food industry and biodefense for rapid bacteria detection and ID.