THE molecules that make muscles contract could give an early warning of a
biological weapons attack. A team of Australian researchers is using the
molecules to develop a chip-based bioweapons detector small enough to fit on a
wristwatch.
When a muscle contracts, filaments of two proteins, actin and myosin, slide
past each other. The researchers say that if you attach myosin molecules to a
biochip, you can use the movement of the adjoining actin molecules to detect
whether biowarfare agents such as anthrax are present.
At the moment, bacteria and viruses are usually identified using laboratory
equipment the size of…
