SBIR-STTR Award

Acute pesticide poisoning remains a vast health problem in the developed and developing world. Domestically, a 2004 study estimates that 18 of every 100,000 US agricultural workers suffer from acute pesticide poisoning and a 2002 study of California air found dangerous levels of three pesticides in urban areas. Since pesticides are primarily applied by sprayers or aerially from planes, where spray drift can translate pesticides far from their targeted areas, widespread monitoring of pesticide concentration at the site of their use and in surrounding areas is required to protect the public from dangerous levels of exposure. However, current monitoring strategies are too slow and costly to do this on a widespread scale. iSense, LLC has developed a novel sensor technology that can detect various toxic industrial chemicals (TICs) across multiple chemical moieties below their permissible exposure (PEL) limit. The technology is rapid, inexpensive and capable of distinguishing between TICS as well as complex mixtures of compounds. We propose to test, improve and optimize this technology toward the detection and identification of organophosphate pesticides, the leading type of pesticide identified in US pesticide poisoning. If successful, iSense technology could drastically reduce unhealthy pesticide exposure and improve medical treatment by simultaneously identifying the pesticides responsible for pesticide poisoning.

Public Health Relevance Statement:


Public Health Relevance:
The proposed research will develop and test a novel array based sensor technology for the detection and identification of organophosphate pesticides. If successful, the proposed effort will yield technology to rapidly detect and identify pesticides, drastically reducing unhealthy pesticide exposure and allowing for the prompt administration of appropriate medical treatment when unhealthy exposure persists.

Project Terms:
Acute; Agricultural Workers; Air; air monitoring; Area; base; California; Chemicals; Complex Mixtures; Detection; detector; Evaluation; Gases; hazard; Health; Household; Humidity; improved; Individual; Measurement; Medical; Monitor; monitoring device; novel; Organophosphates; pesticide exposure; pesticide poisoning; Pesticides; Phase; Protocols documentation; public health relevance; Relative (related person); Reproducibility; Research; response; Sensitivity and Specificity; sensor; Site; Technology; Temperature; Testing; Time; tool; toxic industrial chemical; Translating; urban area

Acute pesticide poisoning remains a vast health problem in the developed and developing world. Domestically, a 2004 study estimates that 18 of every 100,000 US agricultural workers suffer from acute pesticide poisoning. On top of that, long time effects have also been observed with an increased risk for lymphomas and prostate, brain, leukemia, cervix and stomach cancers. Since pesticides are primarily applied by sprayers or aerially from planes, where spray drift can translate pesticides far from their targeted areas, widespread monitoring of pesticide concentration at the site of use and in surrounding areas would be of great interest in order to protect people working in the fields as well as general public from dangerous levels of exposure. Current monitoring strategies are too slow and costly to do this on a widespread scale. Preliminary results for phase I show that our colorimetric sensor array technology can detect organophosphate pesticides in the low ppb level concentrations even in the presence of xylene, the most commonly used solvent for pesticide formulation. These encouraging results lead us to expand our study into Phase II where we propose to expand our library of pesticide tested, going beyond organophosphate pesticides. We also propose to develop two products to address the needs of pesticide exposure monitoring: on one side, a pesticide sensor badge that can be worn by farm workers to monitor their exposure to pesticide, on the other side, a pesticide solar powered station that can be located in nearby fields to monitor pesticide drift or could be even placed on nearby communities, such as schools. If successful, iSense technology could drastically reduce dangerous pesticide exposure and improve medical treatment by simultaneously identifying the pesticides responsible for pesticide poisoning.

Thesaurus Terms:
Acute;Address;Agricultural Workers;Agriculture;Air;Air Monitoring;Area;Arm;Base;Brain;Carbamates;Climacteric;Communities;Data Analyses;Design;Detection;Development;Device Or Instrument Development;Discrimination (Psychology);Drug Formulations;Elements;Exposure To;Farming Environment;Field Study;Fighting;Fingerprint;Flavoring;Gases;General Farm Worker Nos;General Population;Generations;Goals;Hazard;Health;Improved;Interest;Lead;Learning;Leukemia;Libraries;Life;Malignant Neoplasm Of Cervix Uteri;Malignant Stomach Neoplasm;Medical;Methods;Modification;Monitor;Occupational Exposure;Organophosphates;Performance Tests;Pesticide Exposure;Pesticide Poisoning;Pesticides;Phase;Prostate Lymphoma;Prototype;Public Health Relevance;Pyrethroid;Risk;Safety;Scanning;Schools;Sensor;Side;Signal Transduction;Site;Solvents;Technology;Testing;Time;Translating;Vapor;Wireless Technology;Work;Xylene;