The Future of Pathogen-Detection Technology – Quaré
Every surface, every living and non-living object or thing, even the air we breathe contains millions and millions of bacteria.
With pathogens occupying even the hottest, coldest, darkest, and most extreme places on the planet, it is no wonder that millions of people around the world fall victim to deadly bacterial infections.
Typhoid fever, pneumonia, gonorrhea, and countless other infections still remain, despite our so-called technological advances during the past decade.
Large pharmaceutical companies have been churning out antibiotics for decades to cure these infections. With bacteria growing resistant to this however, we are constantly one step behind.
There is one fundamental problem with how we approach these problems. Our discoveries are purely reactive, a solution after the damage is done.
We have NO way to prevent ourselves from getting infected in the first place!
This is why Quaré exists.
Our Biosensor-Based Technology
Our mission is to develop cutting-edge pathogen detection technology to ensure people can eat safely.
We will use a matrix of phage magnetoelastic sensors as the foundation of our own technology to detect bacteria in food real time. The phage-based magnetoelastic (ME) biosensors have been successfully shown to detect various pathogens, including Salmonella, on food surfaces with high sensitivity and specificity.
Once the harmful bacterium has been detected using the scanners, the basic data is sent via the Internet to Quaré’s centralized servers, which uses algorithms to find patterns. This information is available for the users on personalized apps, that give a safety percentage along with the type of bacteria, symptoms, and what types of food or environments they thrive in.
The data patterns that we find can be monetized by selling them to companies, governments, and universities who will find it useful for their various purposes. It can also be used to improve our product, and even give personalized recommendations to the customer.
We will also have an annual subscription model, allowing people to view extra, more personalized info based on their own meals.
The biosensor is composed of a Magnetoelastic (ME) resonator platform coated with a certain type of phage, engineered to bind with a target bacterial strain. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) can be used to verify the specific binding of the target bacterium to the biosensor.
To fully understand how the phage magnetoelastic sensors work, it’s important to understand the potential magnetoelastic sensors and bacteriophages.
Bacteriophages are the most ubiquitous species on Earth. They infect bacteria exclusively and rely on their metabolism to reproduce and propagate. Tailed phages have protein molecules on their tail fibres that enable host-specific recognition of bacteria.
Their ability to infect bacteria in a strain-specific manner has enabled the development of specific biosensors to detect bacteria. However, Quaré aims to harness the potential of phages to detect all types of bacteria, not just specific strains.
MES are made of amorphous metallic glass ribbons and are wireless and passive.
Magnetoelastic sensors are made from highly tensile materials, making them extremely sensitive to even the slightest pressure or fluctuation. Taking this into consideration, applied force, stress, pressure, and strain can be determined using MES. The torque in the ribbons generates a magnetic output that can be tracked to create graphs.
Due to their small size, low cost, long lifetime, and passive and wireless characteristics, MES are ideal for biomedical applications. Due to these characteristics, Quaré intends to use these sensors as the foundation of our own cutting-edge technology.
Company Culture
Our vision is using cutting-edge pathogen-detection technology to rid the world of all bacterial infections. We want to create a safer world and minimize the suffering people go through. For such an overarching goal, we encourage our employees to think big, have new perspectives when tackling the problem, and keep high standards for their work.
Quaré has 10 core values, to keep a healthy and fast-paced workplace.
- Seeking Constant Growth: We never stop learning. We learn from each other, and we seek to gain new knowledge, experiences, and perspectives that we can apply in everyday life.
- Know Your Self-Worth: We put in the time to get to know ourselves, our strengths, weaknesses, and where we can improve. We try new things, and we never put ourselves or others down.
- Share Information Openly, Broadly, and Deliberately: We share information openly and proactively. We share ideas that will benefit Quaré, even if it is uncomfortable.
- Aim to be On-the-Ball: We are quick to adapt and learn in different situations. We are resilient in the face of adversity and we keep a fast-paced workflow.
- Conformity Kills Creativity: We appreciate all perspectives and remove roadblocks for one another to maximize our collective impact. We challenge ideas from a diverse set of perspectives which is essential for building great products.
- Create a Tight Community: We only say things about fellow employees we would say to their face. We go out of our way to interact with new people.
- Take Necessary Risks: Sometimes we fail, but failure makes us smarter. We get back up, we take new risks, and we follow through!
- Celebrate Others: We stand apart from the average. We ensure people of diverse backgrounds and various ethnicities feel included. We encourage people to support each other no matter their differences.
- Be Curious and Open-Minded: Ask why. Search more. Participate. Create. We don’t rest in the belief that we have everything figured out. We always look forward to what is next.
- Give and Seek High-Quality Authentic Feedback: We value our honesty and directness. We seek to improve our co-workers. We keep the best company interests at mind and speak up when needed.
Our target audience includes travellers, as well as people who are hygiene-friendly. Travellers would most likely use our food pathogen-detection product due to the uncertainty surrounding food in foreign countries, and our other products that will be introduced will be beneficial for this audience as well.
We want our customers to feel safe, secure, and in control. Our products deliver this feeling through cutting-edge technology and clear, concise description that allows the customer to gain insight on the pathogen and the disease caused by it.
Quaré aims to rid the world of all illnesses through our pathogen-detection technology. We look for people who can align with our vision, mission, and core values.
If you want to join our mission, check out our company website:
