Utilization of invertebrate learning for flexible and sensitive monitoring and identification of chemicals
AssigneesThe United States of America as represented by the Secretary of Agriculture, University of Georgia Research Foundation, Inc.
InventorsWallace J. Lewis, James H. Tumlinson, Dawn M. Olson, Glen C. Rains, Keiji Takasu, Torsten Meiners, Veronique Kerguelen, Felix Waeckers, Claire Bonifay
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Abstract
A Chemical Detector, a training method and a method for detecting a chemical or chemicals has been developed that uses invertebrate organisms trained to respond to targeted chemical odors.
Claims23
A chemical detection system for detecting the presence of at least one chemical comprising at least one organism trained to display a recordable response behavior to at least one chemical, at least one detection chamber housing said organism, and an air system for drawing an air sample for chemical detection into the chamber over the trained insect.
A method for detecting the presence of at least one chemical comprising
- (a) placing at least one organism trained to detect a chemical into a chamber comprising a compartment for said organism, a sample compartment, a divider with an opening wherein said divider is located between said organism compartment and said sample compartment,
- (b) introducing a sample of air into said sample compartment and drawing it through said opening in the divider into the organism compartment, and
- (c) recording a response behavior of said at least one organism to determine the presence of said chemical.
An organism trained to detect the presence of at least one chemical in a sample of air wherein said organism can display a response behavior to said at least one chemical.
An organism trained to detect at least one chemical outside of the organism's biological context comprising
- an organism that displays a recordable response behavior to at least one chemical outside of the organisms biological behavioral context, wherein said behavior is one that an untrained organism would only display in its own biological behavioral context.
A method for training organisms to detect at least one chemical comprising:
- (a) presenting an organism in the immediate presence of a biological resource,
- (b) drawing air from around a target chemical over said organism while it contacts said biological resource,
- (c) removing said organism from said biological resource after it displays a response behavior to said resource,
- (d) repeating steps (a)-(c) at least about two times in the immediate presence of the biological resource to obtained a trained organism which displays a response behavior to a target chemical without the presence of a biological resource.
A chemical detection system for detecting the presence of at least one chemical comprising:
- (a) a means for introducing a sample of air from an area suspected of containing a chemical into at least one detector chamber,
- (b) at least one detector chamber operatively connected to said means for introducing a sample of air,
- (c) a power source operatively connected to said means for introducing a sample of air,
- (d) a sensor means for detecting a response by an organism trained to detect said chemical in a sample of air wherein said organism is in said detector chamber, and
- (e) a data analysis system operatively connected to said sensor.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.