FOR 434: Oligosaccharide and DNA Chips - Recognition of Secondary Gene Products

整个生物体基因组信息的可用性给化学家和生物学家带来了新的机遇，但也带来了新的挑战。传统的单一实验方法不能充分挖掘生物信息。相反，必须开发大规模的并行实验。生物芯片可以说是快速增长的基因组科学家最重要的工具，因为它们允许对成千上万的生物靶结构进行分子识别实验。“寡糖和DNA芯片-二级基因产物识别”研究单元专注于开发新型生物芯片，提高已知类型生物芯片的选择性，并建立新的生物分子识别现象，这些现象可能随后用于新型生物芯片。有机合成、生物物理表征和生物活性测试是核心技术。被固定在芯片表面的化合物包括寡糖和寡核苷酸。研究了抗原、脂质胆酸和膜结合寡糖的分子识别原理。该研究单位采用跨学科、四管齐下的方法，基于有机合成、结构解析、生物测试和溶液和表面的物理测量。

The availability of genomic information for entire organisms presents chemists and biologists with new opportunities, but also with new challenges. The traditional single experiment approach does not allow mining the biological information to the extent desirable. Instead, massively parallel experiments have to be developed. Biochips are arguably the most important tool in the rapidly growing repertoire ofgenomic scientists, since they allow performing molecular recognitionexperiments with thousands of biological target structures. The research unit "Oligosaccharide and DNA Chips - Recognition of Secondary Gene Products" focuses on developing new types of biochips, improving the selectivity of known types of biochips, and establishing new biomolecular recognition phenomena that may later be employed in novel biochips. Organic synthesis, biophysical characterization, and testing of biological activities are core techniques. Among the compounds to be immobilized on chip surfaces are oligosaccharides and oligonucleotides. The principles of molecular recognition are studied for antigens, lipoteichoic acids, and membrane-bound oligosaccharides. The research unit employs aninterdisciplinary, four-pronged approach based on organic synthesis,structure elucidation, biological testing, and physical measurements in solutions and on surfaces.