Title: The Pathway for Assay and Biosensor Product Commercialisation

Biography:

Dr. Robert Mehalso is internationally recognized for his pioneering and innovative approaches to the commercialization of micro and nanosystems, where he integrated the development of manufacturing approaches, the building of infrastructures, and the delivery of products to the marketplace.

Abstract

Academic and research institutions worldwide continue to receive significant government funding to support assay and biosensor development.  This funding has resulted in these institutions being able to build an assay and biosensor knowledge and intellectual property base.  In many instances, biosensor product concepts have been developed; however, not many products have been commercialized.  It is generally recognized that the conventional infrastructure of the educational system and of current manufacturing techniques are not supportive of the micro/nano-based product commercialization that is necessary to manufacture a biosensor product.    Developing this skill set for micro/nano manufacturing, particularly for engineers, is important for engineers to be proficient at designing biosensor products at the micro/nano scale.  Companies must be able to prototype design concepts and develop manufacturing processes to provide a pathway to biosensor commercialization.    The cost in time and financial resources to build the facilities and to provide the trained personnel and the equipment is beyond the reach of both small and large companies.  This paper will discuss the challenges within academia, industry, and government, and the need for coordinated roles in developing a commercialization pathway for micro/nano-based point of care biosensor products. The challenges will be demonstrated by examples of the commercial development of biomarkers/biosensors using saliva for detecting the progression of cancer, detection of cardiac diseases, and DNA/RNA biosensors for detection of COVID and other viral diseases.