September 2015 SPADA Meeting

What was learned from testing?

Information from previous testing: • Are some exclusivity panel members always negative with previously tested assays – or are they positive only when other exclusivity panel members provide a positive result? • If so, do they need to be included in the panel? • Which soils are problematic for testing and why? • Do some soils inhibit assay reactions? • Do some soils routinely give positive results with multiple assays? • Are the soil samples used representative of areas where assays might be deployed? • Do we need to use a more diverse collection of soil samples in testing? • There is redundancy in the panels - • B. thuringiensis isolates and their derivatives are included in the Exclusivity panel, in the Environmental panel as organisms and as products under “powders and chemicals” • Powdered sugar is simply sugar grounded finally and supplemented with corn starch – can we take corn starch off the environmental panel?

Fitness for Purpose (proposal) Detection of Bacillus anthracis spores in field-deployable, Department of Defense aerosol collection devices.