TOWARD A PORTABLE DNA ANALYZER
STU B RMAN · Chemical & Engineering News · 2003
IN THE MOVIE "TERMINATOR 3: RISE OF the Machines," a cyborg named T-X, sent back from the future to assassinate specific people, tastes the blood of her victims after she shoots them. An analyzer inside her then tests the DNA in the blood and determines virtually instantaneously whether or not the right person has been hit. That kind of DNA analysis capability isn't available today. But one can envision DNA analyzers that would work almost as quickly and easily as T-X's. Physicians might use portable sensors to test people for HIV or for genetic sensitivity to specific drugs, or a soldier might carry a portable detector for anthrax. A new electrochemical DNA analyzer that's miniaturized, reusable, and reagentless may be a key step toward such applications. It was developed by postdoc Chunhai Fan, assistant professor of chemistry and biochemistry Kevin W. Plaxco, and professor of physics and materials engineering Alan ...