BIOMICROSENSOR TECHOLOGY: A PROTEIN COATED PIEZOELECTRIC CRYSTAL DETECTOR

PROTEIN ABSORBENTS (ENZYMES AND ANTIBODIES) WILL BE PLACED AS COATINGS ON THE PIEZOELECTRIC CRYSTAL, AND THE DEVICE WILL BE EVALUATED AS A POSSIBLE DETECTOR FOR IDENTIFICATION AND ASSAY OF THESE AGENTS. THIS EXPLORATORY DEVELOPMENT WILL THUS FOCUS ON A NOVEL METHOD FOR TRANSDUCTION OF A RECOGNITION EVENT INTO AN ELECTRICAL SIGNAL, USING A SURFACE MODIFIED WITH A BIOMATERIAL, PROVIDING A METHOD FOR AMPLIFICATION (DUE TO THE HIGH TURNOVER NUMBER OF THE PROTEIN) TO 1,000,000 OR BETTER, AND A DETECTOR THAT OPERATES WITHOUT LIQUID FLOW.THE DETECTOR, AND EACH ABSORBENT, WILL BE EVALUATED WITH RESPECT TO SENSITIVITY AND LINEARITY OF RESPONSE, SPEED OF RESPONSE, ACCURACY, LIMIT OF DETECTION, EFFECT OF TEMPERATURE, SELECTIVITY OF RESPONSE, SIMPLICITY OF DESIGN, REVERSIBILITY AND STABILITY.