311 HSW and AFIOH plans to award a sole source contract under FAR 6.302-1(b)(2) to 454 Life Sciences Corporation, 120 Commerical St. Branford, CT 06405 for the following effort based on the corporations unique propriety technology that is able to completely sequence an entire bacterial genome in just days. US Air Force in garrison and field units in the development and validation of biotechnology as well as molecular biology-based assays for the rapid identification of diseases, infectious biological agents and toxins. This effort targets the preceding stage to the development of primers/probes for identification of infectious agents that is, mapping the genome of the latter. The map provides the scientists at AFIOH a databank of targets against these infectious agents. Unequivocal identification of pathogenic microorganisms are of vital importance for medical diagnostics and exacting molecular assays are urgently needed by the Air Force Biological Augmentation Teams (AFBAT) in support of both operational deployments and homeland security. Established and well-characterized off-the-shelf microcantilever technology provides a multifunctional, highly sensitive, real-time, DNA-based and/or immunospecific biological detector. This system provides numerous advantages such as: high sensitivity and selectivity, low analyte volume, real time detection in fluids and/or gases, and the possibility to create portable or implantable microdevices. SCOPE: The purpose of this effort is to obtain bacterial maps using rapid sequencing of whole genomes in days as opposed to months by current standard methodologies. One of the primary missions of the Molecular and Advanced Biotechnology Division at AFIOH is to support the development of real-time diagnostic platforms using PCR-based molecular diagnostic methods (i.e. JBAIDS). There is a paucity of genomic information on these species of bacteria and there is an urgent need to expand the repertoire of probes that can be designed specifically to target these species. Such probes are needed as real-time diagnostic tools to be deployed immediately to our troops in theater as well as homeland defense support. Contract Roy Hernandez at 210-536-6103

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