# Immunoassays for Human and Environmental Health Monitoring

> **NIH NIH P42** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS · 2021 · $370,737

## Abstract

ABSTRACT: PROJECT 3 
One of the goals of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Superfund Research Program 
(SRP) is the development of methods and technologies to detect, assess and evaluate the effects of toxic 
substances on human health. To address the issue of high analysis costs for assessing toxic substances in the 
environment as well as the need for measuring indicators of exposure to humans, this project will develop new 
immunoassays, improve the utility of the assays, and apply them (in collaboration with other investigators in 
the UC Davis SRP Center). A complement to gas or liquid chromatography (GC or LC) coupled to mass 
spectrometry (MS), immunoassays are characterized by their speed, sensitivity, high throughput and low cost, 
which is underscored by their long history of use in clinical diagnostics. This project proposes three aims: Aim I 
is to make strategic improvements to an emerging antibody technology (called VHH or nanobody), which will 
vastly change the field of immunodiagnostics, including testing for small environmental molecules. Aim II is to 
develop new assays for compounds of concern to the community partner, identified by the Bioremediation 
project (Project 1), and the SRP that can be used to assess hazardous chemicals in the environment and in 
humans. Some of the high-priority compounds for assay development include coumarin rodenticides, 
polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and pesticides and their degradation products. In this same realm of 
antibody development, the second aim includes a collaboration with Projects 4 and 5 to develop antibodies for 
protein targets needed to enhance the throughput of Western blot technology. Western blots are critical 
components of diagnostic testing to identify the effects of toxic chemical exposure. With improved efficiency, 
more chemicals can be screened and a better grasp of the toxic effects can be discerned. Aim III is to advance 
field methods for chemical detection by developing new immunodiagnostic technologies and applying them to 
real-world sampling needs. Through a collaboration with the Lab-on-a-Chip Nanosensing Platforms project 
(Project 2), classical antibodies as well as newly developed VHH reagents will be used in novel biosensors 
and membrane-based platforms. These new technologies will emphasize field portability, high sample 
throughput, and ease of use by the end-user, in order augment the Program's research translation and 
community engagement efforts. Such technologies will be used to empower communities to collect data in 
response to their environmental chemical concerns. Ultimately, the immunoassays developed in this project 
will be valuable tools for stakeholders who wish to detect chemical exposures and biomarkers of their toxicity.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10179385
- **Project number:** 5P42ES004699-33
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS
- **Principal Investigator:** Natalia Vasylieva
- **Activity code:** P42 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $370,737
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 1997-04-01 → 2025-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10179385

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10179385, Immunoassays for Human and Environmental Health Monitoring (5P42ES004699-33). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10179385. Licensed CC0.

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