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Ethics and Impact
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GLOBAL IMPACT
A large portion of the world’s population suffers from cardiac diseases, thus demonstrating the dire need for a reliable, non-invasive treatment. This design could also be beneficial to those who research drug treatments for cardiac hypertrophy. It can be used as a reliable tool to screen and test potential drugs in vitro. This assay can be used to ensure that a drug has an impact in aiding cell hypertrophy on cell lines before beginning in vivo studies. In the long run, this biosensor design could be used by lab technicians to monitor patients with a family history of heart disease. This same idea could also be applied to other diseases where cell mechanics become irregular over time. |
ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS
This project will solely be used in vitro to test the differences between stretch and no stretch in cardiomyocytes, and therefore should not conflict with any FDA regulations. None of the drugs that would potentially be tested with the sensor will be strictly tested in vitro, and not on living things. The ethical standards that may have needed to be addressed related to the harvesting of neonatal rat cells in which we needed to test our experiment. However, because this is such a common practice it did not impose a large issue for our project. |
HEALTHY & SAFETY ISSUES
Health and safety are paramount when creating any product. Our main concerns were the chemicals needed to build the biosensor and sustain the cardiomyocytes, as well as, the waste created during testing and synthesis of our sensor. As a precaution, proper protection with PPE was ensured when testing the biosensor, or when using any chemicals or reagents in the lab. Lab regulations for disposing of chemicals and biohazardous materials were also followed in order to protect the environment and those working on the project. Lab wastes created during synthesis and testing of the synthetic biosensor were properly disposed of by EH&S. |
ECONOMICS
The current market for our product includes a majority of research labs and pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies worldwide. In the market today, there is a lack of reliable in vitro stretch assays. Our product will be able to provide what is currently lacking. Due to the versatility of the product, we do not need to narrow our target market. In terms of return on investment, our projected view is that the gain from investment will continue to grow with time. The need for a reliable in vitro stretch assay will continue to be present and thus the need for our product will also be present.
The current market for our product includes a majority of research labs and pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies worldwide. In the market today, there is a lack of reliable in vitro stretch assays. Our product will be able to provide what is currently lacking. Due to the versatility of the product, we do not need to narrow our target market. In terms of return on investment, our projected view is that the gain from investment will continue to grow with time. The need for a reliable in vitro stretch assay will continue to be present and thus the need for our product will also be present.
Image References:
[1] http://www.teletopix.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/global-telecom.jpg [2] https://sp.yimg.com/ib/th?id=JN.oBufgfwereImE3oWlGz8MA&pid=15.1&P=0 [3] https://sp.yimg.com/ib/th?id=JN.s%2f5r9RWxVdegcmu0ccHTnw&pid=15.1&P=0 [4] https://sp.yimg.com/ib/th?id=JN.pDyHIAbDy3iqWWEmolxlvg&pid=15.1&P=0 [5] http://projectquinn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/lab_mouse.jpg [6]https://sp.yimg.com/ib/th?id=JN.xOt4DxfGo%2bw%2bZ%2fhiOEqu2A&pid=15.1&P=0 [7] http://topnews.ae/images/Health-Quality3.jpg [8] http://images.all-free-download.com/images/graphiclarge/white_background_earth_picture_170476.jpg [9] https://sp.yimg.com/ib/th?id=JN.%2ff1MjFOUhtIMcXBkq5iBZA&pid=15.1&P=0 |
Authored by Courtney Dreyer
Updated on May 13, 2015 |