Microfluidic Devices For microMDLC
Supported generously by the National Science Foundation, Cornell Nanobiotechnology Center,
the Camille Dreyfus Foundation, and the New York State Office of Science, Technology and Academic Research.
We are interested in the identification and design of new devices for the separation and analysis
of proteins by mass spectrometry. In particular, we are interested in the development of
multi-dimensional liquid chromatography systems on the micron scale for shotgun proteomics. The goal is to have
integrated microfluidic devices for small-scale two-dimensional
protein separations which are compatible with existing electrospray/nanospray mass spectrometers. We take advantage of
the expertise at the Cornell Nanofabrication Facility in
designing integrated devices capable of orthogonal separations of complex protein mixtures. To
date we have developed the first microscale devices for affinity clearance of albumin from serum and cerebrospinal
fluid - thus meeting an important challenge in the proteomics community. We have also developed systems
for the separation of protein mixtures by reverse phase separations and isoelectric focusing. These
separations technologies have been integrated with an on-chip electrospray ionization source for delivery
of the proteins and peptides directly to the mass spectrometer. We are also interested in the application
of giantmagnetoresistive (GMR) materials as possible sensing technologies integrated into these devices
in applications to the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease and in pathogen detection.
See a recent presentation about our efforts in nanotechnology for Alzheimer's disease diagnosis
here. This presentation was
given at the NBTC Annual Symposium in August 2005 and is hosted by the New York Academy of Sciences.
SEM of microfluidic device channel
The design of these new technology for proteome analysis is guided with the aid of our work in
Area 4. These technologies will provide key tools to study membrane proteins which
are the basis of the study in Area 2 and of the diseases in Area 3.
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