A flow cell designed to maintain a stable laminar airflow carrying volatile analytes has been developed.

The detection efforts targeted three non-specific volatile organic compounds (VOCs) linked to bacterial metabolic activity:

• Dimethyl sulfide (DMS)

• Methyl thiocyanate (MTC)

• Dimethyl pyrazine (DMP)

These VOCs can be emitted by multiple sources, including specific plant species, beneficial microbial communities, or biological decomposition.

PickMol™ technology was tested on apples, garlic, and wheat to monitor spoilage—leading to the conclusion that regional foods are the freshest, see for example selected 680 cm^-1 band

It was demonstrated that PickMol™ technology enables effective detection of micro- and nano-plastics in water from a variety of sources, including:

• pure laboratory water
• water from grots
• water from natural environments

The micro- and nano-plastics detection methodology is:

• Simple – no sample pre-treatment required, or only minimal filtration

• Rapid – analysis completed within minutes

• On-site – measurements can be performed directly at the sampling location

Problem:

building a Raman/SERS-based diagnostic instrument capable of real-time, in vivo, in situ, characterization of pathogens – routine point-of-care (POC) tests

1. Design of peptides that bind Spike protein of SARS–COV-2 coronavirus:

Receptor bindine domain (RBD) of viral Spike surface glycoprotein recognizes and binds human angiotensin converting enzyme-2 (hACE2) – a zinc-containing metalloenzyme located on the surface of endothelial cells

Strategy:

Design of linkers (peptides) is based on sequence and structure of hACE2 binding motif for Receptor binding domain (RBD) of Spike protein

2. hACE binding motif for RBD of spike protein

Spike RBD (receptor binding domain) – peptide (mimicking hACE2 binding site – AH19)

3. Predicted binding of Spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 variants to hACE2 and AH19

ΔE_int,MM = ΔE_tot,MM{RBD-hACE2} – ΔE_tot,MM{RBD} – ΔE_tot,MM{hACE2}, MM, OPLS3e, water (implicit solvation)

SERS of the Peptide (AH19) and the Purified SARS-CoV-2 sample

4. SARS-CoV-2 virus detection

Check out the video of covid detection using PickMol™ technology:

Validation

Our methodology was validated in the following locations using our portable PickMol™ Ramascope:

Spain: Alicante region

Moldova: Control of Water Quality in Moldova

Demonstration of PickMol™ technology in glyphosate detection in water in the following video: