Micro and Nanofabricated Devices for DNA Analysis

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): DNA analysis and sequencing is at the heart of all genome projects and most if not all research in molecular, cellular, and developmental biology. It is a major part of modern medical and forensic practice, and these trends in analytical and functional genomics will continue to accelerate for the foreseeable future. Thus the need for new and different ways to sequence and analyze DNA has long been recognized. Current methodologies are relatively slow, the capital costs are high, and they are not very portable. They also require skilled technical staff, usually concentrated in special units within University, Medical, and Industrial settings. Here we propose some solutions to DNA analysis and sequencing speed, cost, and portability. Devices fabricated on silicon and quartz wafers capable of handling fL to mu L volumes, and with analysis speeds of seconds rather than minutes, hours, or days, are discussed and new research with these devices is proposed. At the heart of each device is an entirely synthetic separation matrix fabricated from SiO posts of various sizes and shapes. The central idea is to continue to exploit advances in the semiconductor industry to manufacture these devices. Our approach utilizes recent advances in patterning and etching on the nano and micro scale combined with new insights into the physical basis for DNA separations.