New York State's Biodefense Laboratory

Validation

Wadsworth Center's unique facilities, resources and staff have attracted interest from developers of commercial diagnostic systems to validate their technologies against microorganisms that could be used as bioterrorist weapons (these microorganisms are called "select agents"). With the increasing restrictions on select agent use outlined in the The Select Agent Rule (42CFR73) and the USA Patriot Act, there is a very limited pool of organizations that can participate in validation studies. The Biodefense Laboratory has the necessary permits and personnel to use these organisms for research on assay validation, such as the following:

• RedLine Alert™ anthrax test (now approved for use by the FDA) for clinical sample isolate rule-in by LRN Sentinel labs
• Biosensor 2200R™ detection of anthrax spores in environmental matrices
• Department of Homeland Security study of RAMP™ and Guardian™ hand held assays for dry-powder anthrax spore detection.