Publications by authors named "Samantha J Courtney"
Article Synopsis
- Viral pathogens can easily evolve and evade human immunity, making early detection crucial to prevent pandemics; the development of rapid and accurate diagnostics is essential but is challenged by the ability of RNA viruses to mutate quickly.
- The innovative computational approach called FEVER (Fast Evaluation of Viral Emerging Risks) allows for broad biosurveillance, accurate outbreak diagnosis, and rapid mutation typing of viruses, specifically targeting sarbecoviruses and the SARS-CoV-2 spike variant.
- FEVER assays showed impressive results with a 99.7% predicted positive rate for SARS-CoV-2 sequences and high sensitivity (92.4%) and specificity (100%) in clinical samples, proving effective for tracking and managing future viral outbreaks.
Article Synopsis
- Detection methods without nucleic acid amplification are beneficial for quick viral diagnostics and could enhance pandemic monitoring, especially for increasingly mutating viruses like influenza.
- The Fast Evaluation of Viral Emerging Risks (FEVER) pipeline was assessed using advanced detection techniques, revealing that FEVER probes had superior performance in matching viral sequences and could detect lower RNA concentrations compared to traditional CDC methods.
- Utilizing high-coverage FEVER probes alongside sensitive biosensing technologies presents a promising strategy for improving influenza detection and tracking outbreaks in the future.
Article Synopsis
- - Influenza viruses, mainly A and B, are significant global health threats due to seasonal outbreaks and pandemics, while C causes mild illness primarily in kids, and D is emerging in cattle and pigs.
- - Rapid and accurate diagnostic tests, particularly nucleic acid-based methods, are essential for managing influenza, but challenges arise from the virus's high genetic diversity.
- - Despite recent advancements in nucleic acid detection techniques, there remains a critical need for a fast and reliable diagnostic test suitable for point-of-care use to better respond to both seasonal and pandemic influenza situations.
Biocompatible nanoparticles composed of poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) are used as drug and vaccine delivery systems because of their tunability in size and sustained release of cargo molecules. While the use of toxic stabilizers such as polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) limit the utility of PLGA, stabilizer-free PLGA nanoparticles are rarely used because they can be challenging to prepare. Here, we developed a tunable, stabilizer-free PLGA nanoparticle formulation capable of encapsulating plasmid DNA and demonstrated the formation of an elastin-like polymer PLGA hybrid nanoparticle with exceptional stability and biocompatibility.
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