REU Site: Research Experience for Undergraduates in Biosensing - Engineering Molecular or Nanoscale Signal Transducers for High-Performance Bio-Detection

内华达大学里诺分校为期三年的REU项目：用于高性能生物检测的工程分子或纳米级信号换能器项目每年将吸引8名本科生在生物传感前沿进行10周的研究。生物传感器是解决与人类福祉（良好的健康、有效的粮食和绿色能源农业生产以及安全的自然环境）有关的基本挑战的重要工具。研究项目将通过开发生物传感器并将其应用于人类健康、农业和环境，培训参与者获得有关生物传感的最先进的科学/工程概念和技能。学生将从代表性不足的少数群体、女性和残疾学生中招募，这些学生传统上对本科研究设施的访问有限。该REU网站将研究和培训相结合，将有助于为学生提供新兴的研发机会，并为他们成为未来的领导者做好准备，以进一步推进生物传感知识，解决更具挑战性的问题。内华达大学里诺分校为期三年的REU项目：用于高性能生物检测的工程分子或纳米级信号换能器项目每年将吸引8名本科生在生物传感前沿进行10周的研究。以分子或纳米级实体（荧光团、蛋白质、纳米粒子、纳米管、二维纳米材料等）为特征的研究项目将被设计为生物传感器的信号传感器。这种信号换能器（由于其特定的光学特性或电子特性）可以显著提高生物传感器的灵敏度，也使生物传感器能够用于细胞内或体内检测、可穿戴设备开发等。由于这些项目汇集了来自广泛不同知识领域的新技术和思想，本科生将有机会学习前沿的生物传感技术，整合多学科知识。学生将接受培训，设计和开发结合分子或纳米级信号传感器的生物传感器，并表征生物传感器的检测性能。然后，他们将应用生物传感器来应对人类健康、农业和环境方面的公开挑战。学生有望在生物传感领域获得重要的研究经验，并为生物传感领域的新兴研发机会培养劳动力或未来的领导者。参与的教师也将在发展STEM领域的下一代劳动力方面获得更好的专业和熟练程度。研究结果将向公众公布，吸引更多学生投身STEM领域。该项目是与促进竞争研究的既定计划（EPSCoR）共同资助的。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The three-year REU Site: Engineering Molecular or Nanoscale Signal Transducers for High-Performance Bio-Detection at the University of Nevada Reno will engage 8 undergraduate students for 10 weeks per year in the frontiers of biosensing. Biosensors are important tools in addressing fundamental challenges related to human well-being (good health, effective agricultural production of food and green energy, and safe natural environments). Research projects will train participants to gain the state-of-the-art scientific/engineering concepts and skills about biosensing through developing biosensors and applying them to human health, agriculture, and the environment. Students will be recruited from underrepresented minority groups, women, and students with disabilities, who traditionally have limited access to undergraduate research facilities. This REU site, integrating research and training, will help grow the workforce for emerging R&D opportunities for students, and prepare them as future leaders to further advance knowledge in biosensing, solving more challenging questions. The three-year REU Site: Engineering Molecular or Nanoscale Signal Transducers for High-Performance Bio-Detection at the University of Nevada Reno will engage 8 undergraduate students for 10 weeks per year in the frontiers of biosensing. Research projects featuring molecular or nanoscale entities (fluorophores, proteins, nanoparticles, nanotubes, 2D nanomaterials, etc.) will be engineered as signal transducers of biosensors. Such signal transducers (due to their specific optical properties or electronics) can significantly enhance biosensor sensitivities, and also enable biosensors for inner-cellular or in vivo detection, wearables development, etc. Since these projects converge new technologies and ideas from widely diverse fields of knowledge undergraduate students will engage in opportunities to learn cutting-edge biosensing technologies integrating knowledge of multiple-disciplines Students will be trained to design and develop biosensors incorporated with molecular or nanoscale signal transducers and characterize the detection performance of biosensors. They will then apply biosensors to address open challenges in human health, agriculture, and the environment. Students are expected to gain significant research experience in the biosensing area and grow the workforce or future leaders for emerging R&D opportunities in biosensing fields. The participating faculty will also gain better professionalism and proficiency in developing the next-generation workforce in STEM fields. The outcomes of this REU site will be disseminated to the public and attract more students to the STEM fields.This project is jointly funded with the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR).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.