METHOD AND DEVICE FOR THE DETECTION OF EXPLOSIVES

Abstract: The present invention relates to a method and a device for the detection of explosives, such as trinitrotoluene (TNT) and nitroglycerin, utilizing a biological detector. Preferably the sensor element is a blood vessel or part thereof, and the blood vessel dilatation effect of the explosive is being registered.

Description: Method and device for the detection of explosives The present invention relates to a method and a device for the detec ¬ tion of explosives, such as trinitrotoluene (TNT) and nitroglycerin, using a biological detector. Utilization of the invention makes it -15 possible to detect TNT in as small amounts as 10 mol . The sensiti ¬ vity for nitroglycerin is also high, even if concentrations just as low cannot be detected. Most explosives are vaporized and evolve gaseous substances. This is for instance the case with TNT and nitroglycerin. These substances can be analyzed with the use of chemically advanced and expensive equip ¬ ments, being however more suitable for laboratory work. There is, however, a great demand for a more field-adapted analysis apparatus, which can be used when you are searching for explosives that have been placed by terrorists in cars and at airports and the like. There is also a demand for more field-adapted analysis equipments for the supervision of airports and to prevent the smuggling of explosives. It is also interesting to be able to detect mines which have been placed in order to damage the civilian population or in order to prevent the advance of military units. The best and most reliable method up to now for a more field-adapted detection of explosives has been to use dogs. Dogs are reported to -15 have a sensitivity of up to 10 mol of TNT, which corresponds to -13 about 10 g, a sensitivity which very well agrees with the require ¬ ments given if you should be able to detect a mine when passing. Also other animals such as rats have been tried and found to achieve the same high sensitivity. We have now found that the same high sensitivity, which is achieved with rats and dogs, can be obtained if instead you use a biological preparation in vitro, for instance in the form of sections, pieces, cellular or subcellular portions of blood vessels, and allow air comprising explosive vapours from, for instance, TNT or nitroglycerin to pass the preparation and observe the effect of the explosive vapours on the preparation. The effect of the explosive vapours on, for instance, the blood vessel musculature can be studied. We have found that if the vessel muscle is shortened, precontracted with phenylephrine, an adrenaline-like sub¬ stance, extremely small concentrations of TNT will cause relaxation of the muscle. The effect of TNT on the vessel muscle contraction can be -15 observed at as small amounts of TNT as 10 mol, which is identical with the detection limit of the mine dogs for TNT. Thus, the biologi¬ cal detector according to the invention can register a mine which is enclosed in a metal or plastic casing just by allowing the detector to pass in the vicinity of the mine. It can very well be used to check luggage at airports, locate bombs during bomb threats and the like, i e the biological detector of the invention fulfils the demands for sensitivity as well as for usability in the field. In order to be able to register the effect of the explosive on the blood vessel musculature, you can measure directly the change in the tension force in the muscle or the muscle elongation. You can also study the effect on the enzyme which is active at the transfer of the chemical stimulation leading to vessel dilatation. This enzyme is believed to be the hemoprotein guanylate cyclase. The hemoprotein reaction can be registered optically, for instance with the use of a fibre-optical sensor. A device according to the present invention for the detection of an explosive, measuring the change in the vessel muscle contraction caused by the explosive, comprises a force measuring element, to which the vessel musculature is attached. The vessel muscle is preserved in a container holding an organ bath giving nutriment and also a proper milieu for the muscle. The muscle is also attached to the bottom of the container. Gas of a suitable composition is pumped through the container. The vapour which is to be examined is also sucked or pumped into the container the same way. The sensor elements in the form of blood vessel pieces can be stored cold and attached inside expendable packages provided with holds for force measuring elements and counterholdings. During the analysis the blood vessel piece used in the apparatus can be exchanged for new blood vessel pieces by just a single manipulation. The blood vessels used in accordance with the invention are preferably taken from newly slaughtered mammals, such as cows and pigs, but also from reptiles, such as snakes. If vessels from reptiles are being used, the organ bath in the form of a physiological buffer solution must not be kept at +37°C but can be of the same temperature as the environment. Intestinal blood vessels can, for instance, be used. The invention will now be described in more detail in an illustrative but not delimiting purpose by means of an example, and reference is made to the attached drawings, where Fig. 1 shows a device according to the invention and Fig. 2 shows (A) a representative registration of the effects of TNT. The blood vessel was mounted in a tension meter, and 30 JUM phenylephrine (an adrenaline-like substance) was used as contracting agent; (B) a concentration-effect curve for TNT. The effect (the y-axis) gives the percentage tension change induced by different concentra¬ tions of TNT (0 % tension = before the addition of phenylephrine; 100 % ~ after the addition of 30 uM phenylephrine). The vertical lines give the S.E.M. (n=15). Example Materials and methods Bovine esenterial arteries were fetched from a local slaughter-house within 30 minutes after the slaughter. The arteries were transported to the laboratory in a thermos flask, which contained a physiological buffer solution. After the removal of surrounding fat, the arteries were opened longitudinally and then cut into pieces of about 5 mm. The pieces 1 were mounted in organ baths 2, which held physiological buffer solutions 3 and were equipped with tension sensors 4 (Fig. 1). The buffer solution was Kreb ' s bicarbonate buffer and was kept at 37°C which was achieved by keeping the organ bath immersed into a water bath 5 of 37°C. The isometric tension was registered by means of Grass-amplifiers 6, which were equipped with recorders. Gas of the composition 5% carbon dioxide and 95% oxygen was pumped in through a conduit 7. After the mounting had taken place, the artery pieces were allowed to obtain equilibrium during 2 hours. Then the arteries were contracted with 3 uM phenylephrine. When a stable contraction was -15 -7 obtained, TNT was added in rising concentrations (10 - 3 x 10 M), and the mechanical effects from each addition were recorded. Experimental data for the varying additions of TNT were adapted to the logistical function: E = E m ma a x v x A q /( A q + EC5, n 0 q ) by means of a non-linear regression analysis utilizing a computer and a digital plotter. E, E and A are the observed effect, the maxi¬ mum effect and the concentration of the agonist (in this case TNT) respectively. EC J -Q is the concentration which gives half of the maximum effect and q is the slope of the curve. The results are pre¬ sented as arithmetric average values ± S.E.M. (standard error of means) . Results and discussion It was found that TNT in extremely small amounts relax precontracted bovine mesenterial arteries (Fig. 2). The lowest concentration of TNT giving a reproducible effect corresponds to the theoretical detection limit of mine dogs. In occasional cases, effects of even smaller amounts of TNT could be observed.

Claims: Cl ai s : 1. Method for the detection of the presence of explosives, character¬ ized by exposing a biological preparation in vitro to the vapours that explosives such as trinitrotoluene (TNT) and nitroglycerin evolve to the environment, said preparation being reactive to said vapours, and thereafter the exposure effect on the preparation is determined. 2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the biological preparation consists of a blood vessel or sections, pieces, cellular portions or subcellular portions thereof. 3. Method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the prepa¬ ration is made from blood vessels from mammals, for instance from cow or pig. 4. Method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the prepa¬ ration is made from blood vessels from reptiles, for instance from snake. 5. Method according to any one of claims 1 - 4, characterized by utilizing the vessel dilatation qualities of the explosive vapours at the detection thereof by precontracting the blood vessel preparation, exposing the preparation to the explosive vapours and determining the relaxation of the preparation caused by the exposure, the tension force or the length being registered. 6. Method according to claim 5, characterized in that the precon¬ tracton of the preparation is made by means of an alphaadrenoceptor agonist, for instance adrenaline or phenylephrine. 7. Method according to any one of claims 1 - 6, characterized in that the activity of the dilatation stimulating enzyme in the blood vessel preparation is determined before as well as after the exposure. 8. Method according to claim 7, characterized in that the effect of the exposure on the contents of hemoprotein in the blood vessel preparation is determined optically, for instance by means of a fibre-optical sensor. 9. Device for the detection of the presence of explosives, characte¬ rized by comprising a biological sensor preparation (1) affected by the presence of the explosive, which preparation consists of a blood vessel or part thereof; an organ bath (2) comprising a physiological buffer solution (3) being suitable for the preparation;.a water bath (5) into which the organ bath is immersed and having a temperature being suitable to the preparation; a conduit (7) for the gas supply to the preparation; a tension meter (4); holds for the attachment of the preparation to the organ bath and to the tension meter; and a device (6) for the registration of the change in the preparation tension or length caused by the presence of the explosive.

Inventors: AXELSSON KRISTER, KARLSSON JAN-OLOF, OEDMAN SVANTE, AXELSSON, KRISTER, KARLSSON, JAN-OLOF, OEDMAN, SVANTE
Applicants: FOERSVARETS FORSKNINGSANSTALT
Application year: 1990
Main classification: G01N33
IPC codes: C12Q1, G01N33