CLSU faculty member develops tool for pathogen detection in water samples

CLSU faculty member Rubigilda Paraguison-Alili ((Photo from Department of Agriculture – Bureau of Agricultural Research Facebook page)

MANILA, Philippines — A researcher from the Central Luzon State University (CLSU) together with the Department of Health (DOH) and the Department of Science and Technology Philippine Council for Health Research and Development (DOST – PCHRD) has developed a tool that can detect disease – causing organisms in bodies of water.

According to CLSU faculty member Rubigilda Paraguison-Alili, the said tool can check the presence of parasites and bacteria that can cause schistosomiasis and leptospirosis.

“Ang biosensor ay parang test kit, siya na nagdedetect ng itong mga pathogens na ito, mga bacteria na ito, mga parasites na ito dito sa tubig,” Paraguison-Alili said in an interview with Inquirer.net.

The tool can offer on-field testing, so researchers or users can check whether or not a body has pathogens even without going to a laboratory.

The user of the kit will collect a one to five liters of water sample, which will then be filtered for debris. The debris that will be collected through the filter can then be tested for possible presence of pathogens using a specific dye.

The detection time will also take around 30 minutes, she added.

Paraguison-Alili added that the tool kits are under the pilot testing phase.

“Currently they are under pilot-testing and pre-commercialization na siya,” she said.

She added that the DOH will also distribute the kits to barangays for disease monitoring and surveillance.

In June, Paraguison-Alili received a special citation from the  National Academy of Science and Technology for the initiative.