Tuesday, 4th April 2006 (4658 views)

Researchers at the University of East Anglia have found that gold nanoparticles are effective at detecting biological toxins and have developed a method of using them to analyse fingerprints.

The scientists, led by Professor David Russell, are investigating ways to use the gold particles to detect dangerous substances. The technology may result in a portable device that could quickly analyse fingerprints and give answers at crime scenes.

Professor Russell coated gold nanoparticles with an antibody specific to cotinine - the substance that appears in a person's fingerprints when they metabolise nicotine.

Particles – measuring about 1/5000th the width of a human hair - were labelled with a fluorescent protein that would illuminate under light, allowing the scientists to identify whether or not a print is from a smoker or not.

Professor Russell told New Scientist: "The idea is to develop something for first responders, so they can quickly find out more about a suspect."

He said that the technology could be extended to detect the H5N1 strain of bird flu, meaning that potential outbreaks could be quickly identified without samples having to be sent back to labs.

And other applications could include detecting whether or not drinking water contains dangerous toxins, Professor Russell believes.

"We can get quantitative information about how much of a toxin is present," he told the BBC. "We can detect well below the threshold limit so we know the water is pure before we drink it."

 

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