Developing Lab on a Chip Technology for the Detection and Characterisation of Giardia duodenalis cysts and Cryptosporidium spp. oocysts on Foods

Abstract

In the present study methods which can be integrated into a complete lab on a chip system for the detection and characterisation of Giardia duodenalis cysts and Cryptosporidium spp. oocysts from foods were developed and tested. Microfluidic chips, which make use of inertial separation, were designed and fabricated for the concentration and separation of either cysts or oocysts from food particles. These chips were highly specific for their intended target and were shown to be effective when used for artificially contaminated lettuce samples. The quantification by real-time PCR of Cryptosporidium spp. hsp70 mRNA, expressed in response to a heat stress, was assessed as a potential lab on a chip method for the detection of viable oocysts from foods. This method proved to be effective in determining the viability of oocysts in apple cider and the effects of high hydrostatic pressures on the viability of oocysts.