Magnetic Ionic Liquids as Tunable Solvents for Chemical Analysis

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This project is funded by the Chemical Measurement and Imaging (CMI) program in the Division of Chemistry. Professor Jared L. Anderson of Iowa State University is developing new approaches and platforms for chemical measurement that exploit the physical and chemical properties of magnetic ionic liquids (MILs) in chemical separations. MILs are non-molecular solvents that possess low melting points, tunable viscosities, and can be readily manipulated using an applied magnetic field. The proposed work has the potential to provide additional approaches by which nucleic acids are analyzed from clinical samples, and could transform numerous interdisciplinary fields including clinical diagnostics, biomedicine, and forensics research. Graduate and undergraduate students acquire training in separation science and bioanalytical chemistry in an environment that teaches and encourages innovation and entrepreneurship through modules developed with the Liberal Arts and Sciences Dean’s Innovation and Entrepreneurship Academy at Iowa State University. High school students participate in the research through the American Chemical Society Project SEED program. A social networking program is used to disseminate scientific videos to young children and the general public. This proposal focuses on three areas where magnetic ionic liquids are studied and used in the chemical measurement of nucleic acids. Magnetic ionic liquids with stronger magnetic properties are designed and incorporated into bioanalytical assays and chromatographic separations; approaches using MILs for the capture of nucleic acids relative to other components in biological samples are developed; and new chemical measurement platforms using 3D printing are studied to enable differentiation of nucleic acid sequences that contain single-nucleotide polymorphisms. 3D printed droplet generators provide customization of droplet size and volume and are extended to the production of uniform MIL droplets within aqueous samples. This research provides fundamental new knowledge about these materials and catalyzes the development of new approaches for achieving rapid and selective nucleic acid analysis.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.