A sponge-like sensor that changes color from yellow to red when it touches sarin or similar nerve agents has been named one of the 10 top Army inventions of the past year by the U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command.

The sensor is made by Agentase LLC, an Oakland-based biotech startup founded in 1998 by University of Pittsburgh professor Alan Russell and a former student, Keith LeJeune. LeJeune is chief executive officer of Agentase and Russell is director of Pitt's McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine.

Russell, LeJeune and others involved in developing the sensor will be honored at a ceremony today in McLean, Va.

The Nerve Agent Sensor, an outgrowth of Russell's research, consists of a polymer embedded with an enzyme that reacts to nerve agents. It is designed to be used by soldiers and civilian first-responders who might encounter a chemical attack.