Nanotechnology DNA Sequencing:
Improving DNA processing technologies

This is supplement #1 to award 2004-LT-BX-K001. Brown University will use this funding to study, design and test new DNA sequencing methods using nanotechnology. At the heart of DNA sequencing and the forensic sampling and analysis of DNA lies a true, tried, effective, but limiting method of DNA separation known as gel electrophoresis which Brown University hopes to displace through the proposed efforts. The size, time, costs, and cumbersome attributes of this technology warrant the investigation of a faster platform that can also work with smaller sample sizes. Typical gel electrophoresis separates DNA by hindering its movement in an electrical field by a polymeric matrix. Brown University will replace the polymeric matrix with the much smaller and much denser collection of carbon nanotubes (CNTs), thus allowing the ability to work with smaller samples of DNA that could be separated faster. In addition, the CNTs can be used repeatedly after washing and will speed up the sequencing process. The simplest to the most complicated cases could benefit from the routine and commonplace sequencing and comparison of DNA samples.

nca/ncf