Coming soon: Biosensor to detect pathogenic shrimp

The Department of Science and Technology's Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development and research partners the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center, University of the Philippines' Philippine Genome Center and the Ateneo de Manila University will soon complete a biosensor kit to detect pathogens in shrimps. Cynthia Saloma, director of the National Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology in UP Diliman, said that the project detects and identifies diseases carrying pathogens in shrimp to aid the country’s shrimp farmers. Saloma said that the biosensor kit called PhilGeneStrips would be affordable, easy to use, and with the ability to identify safe shrimp. It can also detect White Spot Syndrome virus, a contagious infection that can lead to sudden death.