Advnt Biotechnologies – Blog/News

Posts Tagged ‘Mold’

The Economics of Black Mold

Wednesday, November 30th, 2011

AdVnt Biotechnologies LLC, the first company to design a rapid Bio-Warfare detection device that can run 5 test from one sample, decided that the next project they would develop should be one that hits close to home. Not just close to home but actually in the home or office and with good reason. With the highest foreclosure rate in American history showing no sign of slowing down while the mortgage of many houses are costing more then the property is worth. The current economic crisis is taking a horrendous toll on both the homeowner and business owner. The very last thing a concerned homeowner wants to hear about during these uncertain times is an economic threat that could be growing behind the walls or floorboards of their biggest investment. Unfortunately for those residences that live in regions that have had high water and moisture accumulations or flooding this past year, mold growth and it’s economic impact is a very real concern. So when AdVnt Biotechnologies LLC was looking for the next big biological threat to US citizens, the decision to research and develop a product to add to their catalog of Bio-Threat Detection Tests was a no-brainer. AdVnt Biotechnologies set out to design a low-cost device that could accurately detect the dangerous black mold species responsible for costly damages to both health and hearth.  Their efforts paid off and now AdVnt Biotechnologies is proud to announce it’s successfull new black mold detection device…  “The Informant 15-Minute Black Mold Detection Test”.

Since there are over 100,000 + species of mold and scientist are always finding more new species, there is no getting away from mold. It is just as much a part of the world we live in as the air we breathe, the ground we stand on and the water we drink. Mold is everywhere, but when mold enters a home under the right conditions, the only course of action is to take action before things get out of control. Like the old Benjamin Franklin quote goes…”Time is money… and when it comes to mold growth in a home, there simply is no other statement that sums it up best.

Mold enters a home as microscopic spores that are most generally carried by airflow. Once these spores find the perfect condition such as high humidity, water, moisture, oxygen and a food supply the spores starts to thrive, grow and reproduce until they become more then a common nuisance. Festering and feeding themselves on the materials that makes up the very structure of a home or office, such as wood, drywall, leather goods, food, ect … Once these intruders take root, the mold spores then grow until they become an economic liability with horrific long-term financial consequences. Not unlike the deregulation of our banking system during the greed rush of the 90’s that set the stage for the eventual crisis we are all now having to confront.  Mold spores like Enron, Maddoff, and those shifty real estate investments  conspire to eat away at your hard earned investments without giving you the slightest clue to the amount of damage that is being done to your health and welfare. A black mold infestation left untreated in a home or business can have a staggering impact on the building infrastructure resulting in expensive mold remediation bills and extremely high medical cost to those unlucky enough to be living or working within the structure.
 
When mold is left untreated, it becomes unsightly, smelly and in the case of three types of species, hazardous to your health. This type is known as Black Mold. The staggering economic losses that come from a severe black mold infestation ranges from decreasing the value of your home and rising medical cost for the treatment of symptoms such as allergies, asthma, bronchitis, respiratory infections, migraines, and in the case of those who live with immune challenged systems, long-term damage to their health or even death. Structural damage to buildings that require mold remediation can be as little as a simple clean-up to having the entire building demolished. 
 
The Center for Disease Control as determined that of the 100,000 known species of mold, three qualify for causing hazardous health problems for humans. Penicillium , Aspergillus and Stachybotris. These three species are capable of producing Mycotoxins, a type of metabolite that can be poison to some species but not to others. The type of mycoxins produced depends on the type of species produces it. It is the effects of these mycotoxins that the Center of Disease Control was able to narrow down the mold threat to humans to just three species.

Thanks to a device like the “Informant 15-Minute Black Mold Detection Device”, Accurate early detection of black mold infestations can now be done for a low cost and in the privacy of your home or office. Once the mold spores are collected with our easy to use sample collection kit, you will know in as little as three to 15-minutes if you have active, dangerous mold spores. With this information you will have the evidence you need in making the decision to contact your insurance broker or a qualified mold remediation specialist. Saving both time and money. The long-term savings in protecting yourself, your family and the value of your home will more then pay for itself.

It Creeps, It Crawls, it climbs on walls…

Thursday, June 24th, 2010

For movie fans, this line may bring back memories of a popular 1950′s science fiction movie starring the late great actor Steve McQueen called “The Blob”. In this creature feature a grey slimy glob of space goo from outer space falls to earth with a voracious appetite and proceeds to eat on the denizens of small town USA. As the creature consumes its unwilling victims it takes on the form of a big red glob of goo, hence the making of the creative title. This cosmic space sludge would slowly and methodically ooze its way through floorboards, sink drains, walls and air vents allowing it to sneak up on its unsuspecting victims, cover them up and ingest them. What’s interesting about ‘The Blob’ is that it uses the same exact modes of home invasion as does toxic Black Mold.  Areas in homes that have been damp for long periods of time are susceptible to Black Mold spores taking root and settling in and spreading throughout a household as quietly and efficiently has ‘The Blob’. And since it is not a big red glob with molecular stability issues but microscopic airborne spores that can be everywhere and not even be seen, the idea of Black Mold could even be considered more threatening. This concept was not lost on Hollywood either, other such fungi infested features sprung to life in those no to distant days of Hollywood, The classic British yarn “Day of the Triffids” featured cannibalistic space plants that grew out of a space based fungus and the popular “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” were also banking on the fear of the unseen flesh devouring microbes to bring home the box office shivers.

 

Most recently in the film “The Happening” a mysterious ‘Red Fungus’ comes out of nowhere to cause entire populations of individuals to suddenly have a desire to commit suicide. This of course wrecks havoc on the day-to-day activities of it’s bewildered cast and a ten-dollar hole in the wallets of the unlucky masses that filed in to see this drama play out on a big screen. Unlike the cosmic invaders of yester year, this time the threat is explained as a defense mechanism built into the earth’s eco-system to help maintain a natural balance to human over population, making it an even greater ‘Inconvenient Truth’. 

 

Although we may never see a horror film from Hollywood featuring the horrifically nasty black crawling slime known as “BLACK MOLD” (music builds to crescendo), the amount of damage that this primordial black substance can bring to an unsuspecting household, or an unknowing bystander can be just as horrific. Sometimes reality can be stranger then fiction and the devastation that can come from simple environmental fungi is no exception. Aside from the harsh impact it can have on health and finances, Black Mold has been known to take out more buildings then a man in a rubber Godzilla suit. Millions of dollars are lost every year to buildings that have to be destroyed because no one realized until it was too late that Black Mold, hiding behind walls, growing under floorboards and crawling through vents, had been growing undetected in the dark places. Now, thanks to Hollywood, we all know about those dark places, and it knows what scares you.

 

Then there’s the innocent victims who sit quietly at home watching a large fish consume unsuspecting beach goers in “Human Sushi II” while microscopic mold spores are unknowingly inhaled into their lungs and up their nostrils causing their immune systems to go to defcon 5. Then after several days, they find themselves short of breath, congested, sore throat, nausea, and suffering from memory loss or screen writer’s block. Many of them will make costly medical visits and consume large amounts of over the counter medications that will at best temporarily alleviate the symptoms but never really cure anything. But then a select few may discover the cause of their woes and respond, but countless others will be trapped in a vicious cycle of ongoing health conditions and over medicated futures.

 

Then, suddenly, ‘in a world’ where all seems lost, one hero takes the stage, armed with a small plastic device; he single handedly takes on the unseen perpetrator and exposes it for what it is. AdVnt Biotechnologies’ new INFORMANT Black Mold Detection Test as the power to turn innocent victims into well informed problem solvers. With one simple device that can expose the villainous Black Mold Spores in the privacy and comfort of one’s own home, you can now take back control of your health, and save your home from uncertain destruction and save the day with a simple and easy to use tool designed to give rapid results within the time it takes to turn off a cell phone. The INFORMANT is a Hand Held Assay, not unlike a pregnancy test, specifically test positive for the presence of the three types of Black Mold spores and their subspecies that are known by the CDC to create health issues. Stachybotrys, Aspergillus, and Penicillium. Using patented antibodies, each test can show reactivity within 15 minutes or less and can be stored for up to 2 years. AdVnt Biotechnology is one of the leading manufactures of Hand Held Assays used by Home Land Security and First Response Teams worldwide. Rapid Biowarfare Detection is what they do. For years they have helped save countless lives from the biowarfare agents such as Anthrax, Ricin, and Botulinum released by terrorist on unsuspecting civilians in devious plots more sinister then anything dreamed up on a soundstage. Now they have applied their expertise to a different kind of threat on the home front with their new INFORMANT 15 Minute Black Mold Detection Test. Now we won’t need another hero.

 

To opt in for AdVnt Biotechnologies product updates & notifications follow this link… http://eepurl.com/gYvBv

Black Mold adds insult to injury for flood victims

Tuesday, May 25th, 2010

Flooding in the Country Music capital of the world has reached catastrophic proportions for many of the residence of Nashville Tennessee. As many homeowners try to restore their homes back to their former glory, many are finding themselves faced with another natural catastrophe literally growing beneath their floorboards, behind cabinets and in their drywalls. Taking advantage of the longstanding waters and wet materials that often remain for days during the clean-up and restoration process of flood remediation, Nashville residence find themselves deeply immersed in trying to prevent their homes from being overrun with the fast growing, disgusting presence of black mold. For months after a major flood, the lingering damp, humid conditions that hover over a flood plain provide the perfect Petri-dish like environment that mold thrives in and spreads at alarmingly exponential rates. The high cost of this infestation can easily run in the thousands of dollars for the average homeowner and upwards in the millions of dollars on the city and state levels. In Phoenix Arizona, one of the nations most dry and arid climates there are at least 20 listings for mold remediation crews alone.

 

Recently reported that in Antlers OK. US congressman Dan Boren announced that the Antlers Public school system would be receiving a large 3 million dollar portion of a federal grant to build a new elementary school to replace the severely water damaged and mold infested Brantley Elementary.

 

Soon homeowners and city officials will have a new tool on their side to help them in the early detection and remediation battle to offset the damages caused by black mold. Thanks to the creation of AdVnt’s soon to be released ‘In Home Mold Detection Kit’, the rapid and early detection and elimination can begin long before the spores have a chance to proliferate. Using a simple Hand Held Assay, and a small sample from a suspected area, a person can determine in 10 minutes or less weather or not immediate remediation action will need to be taken. No special unit will need to be called out to the house, no samples will need to be sent to the lab, the simple easy to follow instructions will allow for a quick private assessment of the situation before one phone call needs to made.

 

To opt in for AdVnt Biotechnologies product updates & notifications follow this link… http://eepurl.com/gYvBv

 

Be prepared with ‘Informant’

Monday, April 26th, 2010

Mold is a functioning part of an environmental ecosystem, playing an important part in the breakdown and decay of dead organic matters such as fallen leaves or dead trees. But when mold manages to grow indoors, it can place a serious strain on both human health and household finances. Mold spreads by producing tiny spores that are invisible to the naked eye. These microscopic spores float through the air and are then ingested or inhaled. When these tiny spores locate a moist area they take root and start to grow. There are many types of mold, none can survive without a constant source of water.

Once Mold sets in and begins to proliferate in the home environment. Black Mold is a type of  mold that has been proven to have serious effects on human health. Black Mold is a mycotoxin, during the digestion of organic matter, the fungi secrete enzymes into nutrients in order to break down complex compounds into simpler compounds that can be ingested by the mold and used as nutrition.  These digested nutrients produce secondary metabolic waste called mycotoxins that are released to give the mold a competitive edge over other organisms. Inhaling or coming into contact with black mold or black mold spores can produce severe cold or flu like symptoms, including running nose, itching, red or watery eyes, fatigue, memory loss, excessive mucous discharge, dermatitis, skin rash, stomach upset, harsh allergic reactions and more. Symptoms may be immediate or build up slowly over a period time. Those who already have taxed immune systems or are asthmatic may be at a higher risk of infections but healthy individuals are in no way immune. Research is still being done to determine just how far reaching exposure to black mold has on human health, but studies show that the negative effects are far reaching. For more detailed information consult a health professional or your state and local health departments.

Once it is discovered that there is black mold in your living environment, it is important to totally eradicate it. Floating, airborne spores come from outdoors, on pets, or on hair and clothing of individuals who enter in from outside. Ventilation systems and open windows are also open pathways and allow for spore invasion. However, these spores will not take root and become active unless there is a source of longstanding moisture present in the home. If there is black mold found growing in a home, repair the source of the moisture and clean the affected area and allow it to dry thoroughly. Dispose of any infested materials such as wood, porous tiles and drywall. If the moisture is not removed black mold can grow back. Molds can grow on cloth, carpets, leather, wood, sheetrock, insulation and pantry foods. It is a myth that mold can only grow in dark places. All molds that appear black are not of this dangerous variety, it’s hard to differentiate among them without  The InFormant 15 Minute Black Mold Detection Kit (Formerly known as AdVantage). Regardless of the type of mold you may have, the Center for Disease Control recommends removing it as soon as possible from your living or working environment. The ‘Informant’  Black Mold Detection kit currently being developed by AdVnt Biotechnologies is specifically designed to detect Black Mold in your home in an easy to use hand held device that can detect the presence of Mold in 15 minutes or less. AdVnt Biotechnologies is currently wrapping up development of the Informant Mold detection system and is looking to launch this exciting new product sometime in the middle to late June.  Be sure to visit http://www,advnt.org and stay InFormed.

To opt in for AdVnt Biotechnologies product updates & notifications follow this link… http://eepurl.com/gYvBv

The Silent threat at home

Tuesday, April 20th, 2010

Bioterrorism can come at us in ways we can’t imagine. From that pesky geo-political terrorist to the silent enemies hiding within our own home, the threat of global biowarfare has become an ongoing ever-changing organism. In the wake of the nations crippling healthcare crisis, the need to be concerned for ones health is now more then ever more important for individuals to do all that they can to ensure their own personal well being as well as that of their own families. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as reported that the presence of black mold in a home can cause a multitude of health related illness beginning with but not limited to respiratory illnesses, memory loss, chronic fatigue, dizziness, the list goes on. Those who have Asthma, HIV, or have challenged immune systems are at an even greater risk. Add to this the understanding that Mold can be undetected in your home, hiding in vents; behind walls and under floorboards, the infestation becomes even more life threatening. Soon AdVnt Biotechnologies will bring its bioterrorism expertise closer to the home front with its new ‘Informant’ in home mold detection system. Informant is a personal, easy to use mold detection kit that will allow the concerned homeowner a way to reliably and safely test for the presence of black mold in their living environment. Expected for release in mid to late May, Informant could be the first line of defense against the ever-increasing cost of healthcare.

To opt in for AdVnt Biotechnologies product updates & notifications follow this link… http://eepurl.com/gYvBv


Pro Strips (Patent Pending)
Informant 15-Minute Black Mold Detection (US Patent No. 7,368,256)