Peptide Array Host-based Diagnostics for Detection of Human Exposure to Biological Agents
This solicitation is a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) as contemplated in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 6.102(d)(2) and 35.016 to provide for competitive selection of research proposals. A formal Request for Proposals (RFP) will not be issued.
The goals of the DHS Science and Technology Directorate Chemical & Biological Defense Division mission related to the Rapid Diagnostics Program include the development of diagnostic technologies and capabilities for chemical and biological threats. Specific to this BAA, the primary goal of the Rapid Diagnostics Program is to provide a broad-spectrum diagnostic to enable triage in emergency response scenarios to optimize medical actions and decisions. Applications include development of Point-of-Need (PON) diagnostics, laboratory based diagnostics and capabilities to inform and support diagnostics with improved efficacy. To this end, DHS S&T is interested in understanding the utility of array-based technologies that provide potential diagnostics capabilities by leveraging information associated with host immune response markers. Recent developments and accomplishments in exploiting host immune response markers for rapid clinical infectious and chronic disease diagnostics have gained much attention. The novelty of using a single reagent/test to diagnose a broad array of clinical infectious and chronic diseases with minimal sample preparation warrants the need for additional investigation, development, optimization, testing and evaluation for the introduction of a disruptive technology to improve health care and support the Global Health Security initiative.
The intent of this solicitation is to leverage prior government and industry investments which have examined quality control processes for array manufacturing, array content, sample handling, assay chemistries and data analysis algorithms to optimize the technology and have enabled the association of blood samples with disease states. Proposals should provide experimental designs that answer key questions to understanding the utility of peptide array technology, which include: 1) the ability to differentiate diseases with high specificity, 2) the ability to capture a disease during early symptomatic stages to support clinical diagnosis, 3) the ability to differentiate acute vs chronic vs previous exposure vs vaccinated individuals, and 4) the ability to obtain reliable and reproducible results by leveraging a defined quality control process during manufacturing and accommodating sample variability.
Mike Jones, Contracting Officer, Phone 202-254-5676, Fax 202-254-6911, Email [email protected] - Shelby Buford Jr, Contracting Officer, Phone 202-254-5781, Fax 202-254-6911, Email [email protected]
