The Handheld Isothermal Silver Standard Sensor (HISSS) project was sponsored by
DARPA
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is a research and development agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the development of emerging technologies for use by the military.
Originally known as the A ...
in the 2000s to develop a hand-held sensor that is capable of identifying biological weapon threats across the entire spectrum including bacteria, viruses and toxins. The program began in early part of the 21st century with the following goals:
* DNA detection without
polymerase chain reaction
The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a method widely used to rapidly make millions to billions of copies (complete or partial) of a specific DNA sample, allowing scientists to take a very small sample of DNA and amplify it (or a part of it) ...
(PCR)
* RNA detection without PCR or reverse transcription
* antibody-based protein detection at sensitivities unachievable by traditional methods
The final goal was to give field units the ability to detect threat agents across the complete spectrum of biological warfare weapons.
The main contractor for this project was
Northrop Grumman
Northrop Grumman Corporation is an American multinational aerospace and defense technology company. With 90,000 employees and an annual revenue in excess of $30 billion, it is one of the world's largest weapons manufacturers and military tech ...
with subcontractors
Ionian Technologies
Ionian Technologies Inc. was a United States Biotechnology Company focused on molecular diagnostics development for the detection of infectious diseases and biothreat agents. It was established in 2000 in Upland, California as the first spin-off c ...
and
Ribomed.
External links
HISSS Project
Biological warfare
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