A researcher at the University of Massachusetts Amherst has received a $340 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop a portable optical sensor system that enables medical personnel or laypersons to rapidly diagnose the severity of on-site brain injury using a single drop of blood.

Nianqiang Wu, Professor of Chemical Engineering at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and holder of the Armstrong-Siadat Chair, is the principal investigator of the study.

The new optical sensor system comprises an ultrasensitive test strip resembling a pregnancy test and a portable optical reader for recording results. The internal structure of the system is designed using nanotechnology to reduce false positives and amplify the detection signal.

A drop of the victim's blood obtained via finger prick is applied to the test strip and then inserted into the diagnostic reader. This method is similar to the approach used by millions of diabetes patients to test their blood glucose levels.

Typically, traumatic brain injury (TBI) is caused by a severe blow or jolt to the head. The most common causes are traffic accidents, falls, sports injuries, and assaults. According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately 50,000 people in the United States die each year from TBI-related cases, and 530 ten thousand people are disabled due to TBI.

Current methods available for diagnosing the severity of TBI are neither rapid nor suitable for on-site use. They involve imaging tests such as MRI or CAT scans, or observational tests conducted over time, such as assessments of memory loss, loss of mobility, and loss of consciousness. In the United States alone, the total direct and indirect costs of TBI treatment amount to approximately $600 hundred million annually.

Currently, blood testing requires drawing a tube of blood via venipuncture, and it takes hours or days to obtain test reports from central laboratories. Laypersons can use the device with a portable reader in emergency rooms, clinics, on football fields, on courts, and at home.

Nianqiang Wu, Professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst

The device can provide results within 25 minutes.

If successful, this inexpensive and rapid diagnostic test tool will transform practices for diagnosing traumatic brain injury in emergency departments and pre-hospital settings. It will improve diagnostic accuracy, reduce costs, and enable early medical interventions aimed at mitigating short-term and long-term sequelae (pathological conditions).

Nianqiang Wu, Professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst

The NIH research funded by the Wu is a collaborative project involving multidisciplinary scientists from various institutions and hospitals, including the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and the University of Massachusetts Medical School.