INTEGRATED MICROFLUIDIC MICROELECTRONIC SYSTEMS: TOWARD ACCELERATED TWO DIMENSIONAL MAGNETIC RESONANCE SPECTROSCOPY

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Miniaturization started in the field of microelectronics and the associated fabrication processes revolutionized the way we communicate, process information and compute. Not long ago, a new paradigm based on parallelism was formulated and researchers claimed that miniaturization should operate the same revolution in biology by accelerating bioassays and optimizing chemical reactions when performed in large numbers, on a single chip. Massively parallel biological analysis thus holds enormous potential for a variety of applications such as, drug discovery and detection of chemical/biological hazards. But this potential can only be unleashed to its fullest extent, when the development of Integrated Microfluidic Microelectronic Systems (IFES) is made possible. Nowadays, IFES technology is used in a variety of applications ranging from disease diagnosis to DNA sequencing. Indeed, IFES technology offers many advantages like; high throughput screening capabilities, low sample consumption and rapid analysis. Inasmuch, we undertake the development of the new generation of IFES used in drug discovery applications and necessary for disease management. **In this research program, we will exploit, state of the art, microelectronics and microfluidics, to achieve acceleration of a specific molecular sensing technique, namely; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (MRS). MRS is widely used in drug discovery research for screening potent drugs selected from large libraries of naturally derived or synthesized molecules, visualization of the three dimensional structures of target molecules, identification of drug-target structure stability and last but not the least, elucidating fast time scale dynamic changes in molecular conformations. Despite the important role played by MRS in enhancing our understanding of biomolecular structures, this sensing technique lacks of sensitivity. This is a serious drawback of the classical devices used so far to implement the so-called two-dimensional MRS required for drug discovery purposes. *This project addresses the resolution of technical problems levied on the use of 2D MRS by integrating a large number of miniaturized MRS probes on a single chip. Microfluidics plays an important role in this endeavor. The handling of drug candidates at a micro/nano-liter scale should be fast enough, for chemical change not to take place before MRS analysis. **Moreover, this technology opens up doors for inventing new MRS techniques aiming at, and for the first time, monitoring sub-microsecond dynamic changes in biomolecules. From an economic point of view, and since Canada is considered one of the international capitals of bio-pharmaceutical industries (with $4.2 billion contribution from pharmaceutical sector to Canadian GDP in 2011), the stakeholders for our technology are, potentially, all of the pharmaceutical companies operating on the Canadian territory. This new technology offers great opportunities for new start up companies to take the drug discovery research and development to a whole new level. This translates into an improved quality of life for Canadians.