# Improving the clarification, characterization, and homogeneity of animal serum through Nanotrap nanoparticle technology

> **NIH NIH R43** · CERES NANOSCIENCES, LLLP · 2021 · $162,371

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
SARS-CoV-2 is the β-coronavirus causing the current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak. Large-
scale diagnostic testing and large-scale screening are key tools used to contain outbreaks, and are especially
important for something as transmissible as SARS-CoV-2. While various clinical specimens—like blood,
pharyngeal swabs, saliva, anal swabs, and urine—have showed the presence of the virus in infected patients,
there has been a recent gravitation towards the use of saliva samples due to their ease of collection, at-home
collection potential, and adaptability. Despite these advantages, the detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA, antigen, or
virus in saliva samples is variable, ranging from 30% to 100% sensitivity, due to the fact that saliva is a complex
biosolution. This high variability also means that there tends to be a high background signal for almost all
molecular assays tested, which obfuscates accurate testing and rapid tracking capabilities. To address this need,
Ceres Nanosciences proposes a competitive 1-year supplement onto its existing Phase I SBIR grant
(1R43GM135943; 02/01/2020–10/31/2020; NIGMS) to test the feasibility of using its proprietary and patented
Nanotrap® technology to significantly improve the detection of SARS-CoV-2 from saliva samples using existing
molecular diagnostics assays on the market today. This supplemental aim falls within the scope of the ongoing
funded project, which is evaluating the feasibility of using Nanotrap particles to improve the extraction of common
contaminants—including viruses—from bovine serum. The supplemental work will apply a similar workflow to
evaluate the feasibility of leveraging Nanotrap particles and workflow to cost- and time-effectively screen small
and large volumes of saliva and biobanked whole blood and serum specimens for the presence of SARS-CoV-
2 virus or antibody.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10274670
- **Project number:** 3R43GM135943-01S1
- **Recipient organization:** CERES NANOSCIENCES, LLLP
- **Principal Investigator:** Benjamin Scott Lepene
- **Activity code:** R43 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $162,371
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2020-02-01 → 2021-05-17

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10274670

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10274670, Improving the clarification, characterization, and homogeneity of animal serum through Nanotrap nanoparticle technology (3R43GM135943-01S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10274670. Licensed CC0.

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