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Encapsulation of Islets for the Treatment of Diabetes
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Email: WBACHALO@AOL.COM
DESCRIPTION: Phenotyping involves quantifying the vast array of molecular
components that make up complex organisms. This proposal concerns nanobarcodes,
a potentially revolutionary new technology platform for phenotyping.
Nanobarcodes are free-standing, cylindrically-shaped colloidal metal
nanoparticles, in which the metal composition can be alternated along the
length, and in which the size of each metal segment can be controlled.
Intrinsic differences in reflectivity between the metal segments allow
individual particles to be visualized and identified by conventional optical
microscopy. In contrast to conventional barcodes, nanobarcodes exist on
biologically-relevant length scales can be functionalized to bind specifically
to biomolecules, and can be interrogated in solution or on surfaces using
conventional bioanalytical techniques, including fluorescence and mass
spectrometry. As such, they offer unprecedented opportunities for assay
miniaturization and assay multiplexing, the key obstacles to phenotypic
analysis in small sample volumes. This grant focuses on two key feasibility
issues based on four different types ("flavors") of nanobarcodes: (i)
development of software for automated nanobarcode ID and fluorescence intensity
detection; and (ii) demonstration of multiplexed immunoassays for
mouse-specific proteins on nanobarcodes.
PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATION: NOT AVAILABLE
* Information listed above is at the time of submission. *