New biophotonic light sensor ‘could help detect Legionnaires’ disease’

European researchers have developed a new biophotonic light sensor that could revolutionise current techniques for detecting Legionella bacteria.

The European research group project POSEIDON have developed a scanner to spot the Legionella bacteria in under an hour, whereas current methods can take ten days of cultivation and analysis.

Equipped with tiny sensors, the device works by using a photonics technique called surface plasmon resonance to read information from a refracted laser beam, allowing fast, highly sensitive, inexpensive detection from a small sample.

Legionella bacterium can multiply in plumbing systems, air conditioning units, jacuzzis, decorative fountains or public water supplies, resulting in transmission to humans by inhalation through condensation.

This leads to Legionnaires' disease, a respiratory infection that can cause pneumonia, organ failure or septic shock.

Roberto Pierobon said: "We aim to reduce the time involved in a diagnosis from ten days to less than one hour. In order to prevent outbreaks at critical times of the year, we should be talking about a matter of minutes, rather than days."

With over 20 years of experience within the service engineering market, we at Zenopa have the knowledge, skills and expertise to help find the right job for you. To find out more about the current service engineering roles we have available, you can search for the latest job roles, register your details, or contact the team today.