LightDeck Diagnostics wins SBIR grant to develop water-supply test

BOULDER — LightDeck Diagnostics, a trade name used by Boulder-based mBio Diagnostics Inc., has been awarded a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture to build a rapid test to detect many per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), which can cause cancer, hormone disruption, liver and kidney toxicity, harm to the immune system, and reproductive and developmental toxicity.

“This test will be used in agriculture, water utilities, and manufacturing industries to ensure the safety of the U.S. water supply,” the company said in a news release. 

LightDeck did not disclose the terms of the grant. 

“Our planar waveguide technology, which has already been configured to simultaneously detect two of the most common toxins generated by harmful algal blooms, is sufficiently sensitive to monitor PFAS chemicals,” LightDeck Nick Traggis said in the release. “With this SBIR grant, we will further expand our water offerings and bolster the confidence of decision-makers when it comes to water safety and protection of our agriculture.”

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