Gaskiya Diagnostics, Inc — Department of Agriculture SBIR Phase I: 8.699999999999999

Description

It is well established that disease poses one of the greatest threats to efficient aquacultureproduction as fish are raised in high densities increasing the risk- and rate- of infectious diseasetransmission. Infectious Hematopoietic Necrosis Virus (IHNV) is an RNA virus which causesInfectious Hematopoietic Necrosis (IHN) an incurable disease of Salmonid fish. As such infectedanimals are culled as soon as they begin showing symptoms in an attempt prevent further spreadof the disease; this is often too late as the clinical manifestation of the disease occurs once thedisease has spread to throughout the entire crop.Gaskiya Diagnostics LLC. develops low-cost paper-based easy-to-use diagnostic tests fordisease detection for the aquaculture industry. The colorimetric results are rapid simple tointerpret and require no expertise or equipment. Mitigating the largest risk in aquaculture lowersthe barrier for entry and provides US-based aquaculture with the competitive edge that could resultin the increased domestic production - reducing expenditures on imports increasing revenue fromexports and potentially create new jobs.The USDA/NIFA SBIR Program has prioritized Integrated Aquatic Animal Health Managementas part of the 8.7 Aquaculture topic. We believe that our platform technology represents aninnovative approach to develop low-cost rapid and easy-to-use diagnostic tests against thecommon and pervasive Salmonid pathogen. Our technology combines the necessary performancewithout sacrificing the core-values required by end-users to address this unmet need. The "best"solution is the one that people will use; we achieve this through our patented platform technologythat allows the cost-effective generation of highly sensitive diagnostic tests that can beimplemented pondside without specialized equipment.Project NarrativeOverviewGaskiya Diagnostics LLC. develops low-cost paper-based easy-to-use diagnostic tests fordisease detection for the aquaculture industry. The colorimetric results are rapid simple tointerpret and require no expertise or equipment. By offering a simple-to-use technology we putthe power of diagnosis directly into the hands of farmers/distributers allowing them to immediatelymake decisions and take appropriate action without the requirement of specialized equipment.Faster diagnosis leads to faster treatments fewer losses and more food for the world. The currentproposal addresses the unmet need of cost-effectively detecting Infectious Hematopoietic NecrosisVirus in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) production facilities.The Big PictureRegardless of species disease is the single largest cause of economic loss as when disease hits itis often catastrophic. As O. mykiss are one of the most heavily farmed species in US-basedaquaculture when a crop fails due to disease the impact reverberates throughout the supply chain.To mitigate the risk of disease we propose the development of a pond-side diagnostic biosensorplatform for the rapid detection of pathogens common in O. mykiss aquaculture. Our paper-basedthermo-stable rapid diagnostic test requires no training or expensive/specialized equipment andprovides an easily interpretable colorimetric result within minutes. Low cost high sensitivity andaccuracy as well as rapid results facilitate increased monitoring and providing actionableinformation where it is needed the most. Mitigating the largest risk in O. mykiss aquaculture lowersthe barrier for entry and provides US-based aquaculture with the competitive edge that could resultin the increased domestic production - reducing expenditures on imports increasing revenue fromexports and potentially create new jobs.Responsiveness to USDA/NIFA PrioritiesSeafood production from the wild is under increased pressure due to overfishing and thereforeaquaculture is increasingly an important source of f