In the battle against cancer and other diseases, precise analysis of specific proteins can point the way toward targeted treatments. Scientists at the Technische Universitaet Muenchen (TUM), in collaboration with Fujitsu Laboratories of Japan, have developed a biosensor chip that not only recognizes proteins that are characteristic for specific diseases but also can show if these proteins are changed through the influence of disease or drugs. The biosensor is 100 times more sensitive than current tests in recognizing proteins that are characteristic for the clinical footprint of specific diseases.

The biosensor chip holds synthetic DNA molecules, which are negatively charged, in an aqueous salt solution. These long molecules are tethered at one end to a gold surface. The free end is labeled with a fluorescent marker, so it can be optically observed. At the very tip, scientists can place a capture probe — a molecule that fits together with the target protein like the key to a lock. Alternating electric potentials set the DNA molecules in motion, swinging back and forth between “standing” and “lying” states, with regular changes in a tightly confined but intense field. If the protein of interest is present in sample material placed on the biosensor chip, it will bind to the “key” molecule, slowing the swinging motion of the DNA strands. Technicians can identify the captured protein by measuring the rate of motion.

Scientists at the Walter Schottky Institute, a TUM institute focused on the fundamental physics of semiconductor electronics, are now working with a chip that can analyze 24 different proteins in parallel. Applications for the biosensor chip technology, which the TUM scientists have dubbed “switchSENSE,” include medical diagnostics, pharmaceutical drug development, and proteomics research. Eventually, the technology could make its way into doctor’s offices as a simple and quick analytical tool to identify infectious diseases. The researchers have founded a start-up company to commercialize their development. They hope to complete a pre-production prototype by the end of 2010 and to conduct collaborative pilot projects with customers in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical sectors.

Source: ScienceDaily

Posted May 5th, 2010 under Tech Transfer

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