IDBR: High-Throughput Instrumentation for Lipid Bilayers and Patch-clamp

奖项摘要：提案编号：1063347提案标题：IDBR：用于脂质双层和单通道膜片钳的高通量仪器该奖项支持一个项目，该项目将开发用于记录生物细胞膜上的微小电流的集成微芯片仪器。其目标是提高电生理学仪器研究膜蛋白的灵敏度和吞吐量，包括离子通道的功能分析和使用具有纳米级孔的特殊通道进行DNA鉴定。该项目还将提高膜片钳记录系统的灵敏度，并将允许检查以前电导太低而无法检查的单个离子通道的打开和关闭情况。拟议的仪器将使记录通道的数量增加数百倍。这项研究将推动超低噪音仪器的设计，这种仪器占地面积小，可以用标准和廉价的微芯片技术制造。我们将设计、测量和测试集成电路，以增加记录地点的密度并使记录设备小型化。目前的测量方法在整个生物医学仪器中都有使用，因此这里提出的工作在医学和工程上将有很大的适用性。我们将开发的放大器可用于细胞生物学和生理学仪器、纳米孔DNA测序、细胞接口低功耗电路、纳米传感器和生物医学纳米器件、生物信号的低噪声采集。这项技术和离子通道研究的社会影响是在预防疾病方面，以及在许多其他依赖廉价记录遗传物质的科学领域，如法医学、生物学、人类学。低成本、高通量的电生理学设备还改善了药物的开发和传递，无论是用于疾病预防、基因治疗，还是用于个性化药物。主要调查人员参与了针对代表性不足的少数族裔和女性学生的科学星期六计划。在这个广受好评的项目中，PI正在与从K到12岁的儿童和教师合作，促进实用科学项目，并培养兴趣、能力和沟通技能。研究人员通过在当地学校发表演讲、参加纽黑文科学博览会、组织实验室之旅和周末科学项目来激发学生的兴趣。

Award Abstract:Proposal Number: 1063347 Proposal Title: IDBR: High throughput instrumentation for lipid bilayers and single-channel patch-clamp This award supports a project that will develop integrated micro-chip instrumentation used for recording the minute currents across biological cell membranes. The goal is an improvement of the sensitivity and the throughput of electrophysiology instruments for the study of membrane proteins, including functional analysis of ion channels and DNA identification using special channels with nano-scale pores. This project will also advance the sensitivity of patch-clamp recording systems and will allow inspection of the opening and closing of individual ion-channels whose conductance has previously been too low to examine. The proposed instrument will increase the number of recording channels by several hundred times. The research will advance the design of ultra-low noise instruments that maintain a small footprint and can be manufactured with standard and cheap microchip technologies. We will design, instrument and test integrated circuitry to increase the density of recording sites and miniaturize the recording equipment. Current measurements are used throughout biomedical instruments and thus the work proposed here will have large applicability in medicine and engineering. The amplifier we will develop can be used in instruments for cellular biology and physiology, DNA sequencing with nanopores, low-power circuit for cellular interfaces, nano-sensors and biomedical nano- devices, low-noise acquisition of bio-signals. The societal impacts of the technology and ion-channel research are in the prevention of diseases, and in many other scientific fields that rely on cheap recording of genetic material, such as forensics, biology, anthropology. Low-cost high-throughput electrophysiology devices also improve drug development and delivery, both for disease prevention, gene therapy, as well as for personalized medicine. The principal investigators are involved in the Science Saturdays program for under-represented minority and women students. Within this acclaimed program, the PIs are working with children and teachers from K to 12, to promote practical science projects and to develop interest, abilities and communication skills. The investigators excite students interest with presentations in local schools, participation to the New Haven Science Fair, organizing laboratory tours and weekend science projects.