NanoBiomedical Diagnostics

Existing tests assess the presence of antibodies against bacterial proteins, which take weeks to form after the initial infection and persist after the infection is gone. Now, a nanotechnology-inspired technique developed by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania may lead to diagnostics that can detect the organism itself.

Researchers at theUniversity of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) have created an optical microscopy method based on self-assembling liquid nanolenses that visualise individual sub-100-nanometer viruses and nanoparticles over a wide field of view.

Microvesicles, introduced onto a dedicated microfluidic chip, are labeled with target-specific magnetic nanoparticles and detected by a miniaturized nuclear magnetic resonance system.

As reported in the August 28 issue of Science magazine, IBM Research Zurich scientists Leo Gross, Fabian Mohn, Nikolaj Moll and Gerhard Meyer, in collaboration with Peter Liljeroth of Utrecht University, used an AFM operated in an ultrahigh vacuum and at very low temperatures ( 268oC or 451oF) to image the chemical structure of individual pentacene molecules. With their AFM, the IBM scientists, for the first time ever, were able to look through the electron cloud and see the atomic backbone of an individual molecule. While not a direct technological comparison, this is reminiscent of X-rays that pass through soft tissue to enable clear images of bones.

University of Victoria chemistry professor Alex Brolo sits behind a prototype of a biosensor (yellow) being used to detect leukemia from blood samples.

There are a wide range of nanoscale imaging tools that include microscopic methods such as scanning probe microscopy (SPM), electron microscopy (EM), high resolution optical microscopy as well as different types of spectroscopy; for instance, based on auger electrons (AES) or photoelectrons (XPS/UPS); or even secondary-ion mass spectrometry (SIMS).

Designed and manufactured in Harrisburg, TeraSpectra offers the capability of solving a number of problems in biomolecular, pharmaceutical, analytical and other research areas.

Dolomite, a world leader in microfluidic design and manufacture, has introduced Multiflux-2, a new range of microfluidic connectors and interfaces offering unparalleled high density connection with 1.5 mm pitch between tubing lines for fast, reliable and precisely aligned connections between microfluidic chips, pumps, sensors, valves and other fluidic modules without disruptions to the fluid flow.

Detection of substances on the single-molecule level could provide a helpful too for pharmacology, medicine, and product safety. But toxic or otherwise unwanted substances sometimes have a low molecular weight, making them hard to sense. To make a sensor for these molecules, you need materials with special properties, such that their interactions trigger an abrupt change in behavior.

Following up on this, researchers at the Swiss Nanoscience Institute of the University of Basel the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research in Lausanne developed nano-scale cantilevers coated with DNA molecules that can bind to the RNA from sample cells. When the binding occurs, the cantilevers shift due to the change in the mechanical stress, the angle of which is detected using a laser. The system doesn’t require any amplification or labeling of the molecules, making it rapid, easy and cheap to use.

Researchers at Johns Hopkins have devised a way to detect whether cells previously transplanted into a living animal are alive or dead, an innovation they say is likely to speed the development of cell replacement therapies for conditions such as liver failure and type 1 diabetes. As reported in the March issue of Nature Materials, the study used nanoscale pH sensors and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machines to tell if liver cells injected into mice survived over time.

Read more at: http://phys.org/news/2013-02-transplanted-cells-nanotech-checkup.html#jCp

Dr Luigi Sasso says looking at the proteins in hoki fish eyes is great for the environment and will also help people’s health in the long term. He is researching at UC’s Biomolecular Interaction Centre to investigate pioneering new areas of cutting-edge nanotechnology.

OMICS Group invites all the participants across the globe to attend the 2nd International Conference and Exhibition on Biosensors & Bioelectronics which is going to be held during June 17-19, 2013 at Hilton Chicago/Northbrook, USA.

Findings could open up a new class of technologies with applications in medicine, chemistry, and engineering

The NIMS International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics (WPI-MANA) developed a supermolecular material which makes it possible to visualize the distribution of cesium on the surface of solids and in living organisms by fluorescence.

One approach to improve the efficiency and versatility of these agents is to combine elements within the agents which create materials for dual imaging; achieve MRI and luminescence imaging using a single diagnostic material.