Nanomix developing an ‘electronic nose’. New meaning when the doctor says "please cough"…

Nanomix Inc. Chief Executive David Macdonald holds a wafer containing 2,200 “sensation detection chips” at his Emeryville business.

IMAGINE THIS. You walk into a doctor’s office to find out what’s wrong with your body.

Need a blood sample? Nope. A urine or hair sample isn’t necessaryeither.

Just a whiff of your breath.

Currently a device known as the E-Nose, or electronic nose, is being developed by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley using technology provided by Emeryville-based company Nanomix Inc.

"Instead of sending a sample to a laboratory where they do some kind of elaborate analysis and eventually give you a result, they’ll just have you blow on this chip and have the results then and there," said David Macdonald, chief executive and president of Nanomix.

By David Morrill, BUSINESS WRITER

Full Story: http://www.insidebayarea.com/business/ci_3693157