How a bacteria-detecting strip of plastic film could help identify contaminated food

A team of researchers at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ont. are developing a plastic packaging strip that could one day tell consumers if a meat sample is safe to eat. They've developed a thin, plastic patch they call Sentinel Wrap that changes color under UV light when it comes into contact with meat contaminated with E. coli. The thin, flexible plastic patch looks simple, but it's taken 15 years of research to get it to work, according to Tohid Didar, an assistant professor in McMaster's chemical and mechanical engineering department. A printer deposits small droplets of DNA molecules onto a thin, flexible plastic film. Exposure of the strip to sample contaminated with E. coli followed by its exposure to UV light make the strip light up, signaling the presence of bacteria. The patches also detect contamination in water and other liquids. The findings were published journal ACS Nano. They are hoping to have a commercial product in 2 years. @ https://www-cbc-ca.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/www.cbc.ca/amp/1.4736801