Comments on: IBM writes with AFM down to 10 molecules http://www.foresight.org/nanodot/?p=2227 examining transformative technology Wed, 03 Apr 2013 18:23:47 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.4 By: eoin clancy http://www.foresight.org/nanodot/?p=2227#comment-10588 eoin clancy Thu, 11 May 2006 10:41:50 +0000 http://www.foresight.org/nanodot/?p=2227#comment-10588 The key word here is speed. this system is... "approximately five orders of magnitude faster than in conventional capillary electrophoresis"... Also of interest is the possibility of using this technique in parallel, with their inhouse millipede technology (where IBM have created an array 4096 cantilevers on a 6.4mm x 6.4mm substrate). Detection of molecules in the zeptomole range are no longer very unusual. Detection limits in this range (for nucleic acids) are routinely achieved with quantitative PCR. There are also several other assays out there with these ranges of sensitivity eg the bio-barcode assay being developed by Chad Mirkin and Nanosphere 0.1 zeptomoles are actually 100 yoctomoles.... Kinda reminds me of the work done by Andrew Briggs et al, when they created a yocto liter test tube! See here for the article http://www.rsc.org/publishing/journals/CC/article.asp?doi=b414247k On the side, I love the word zepto, so much so, I named my then small goldfish Zepto. I think he's now an atto sized goldfish! Eoin The key word here is speed. this system is… “approximately five orders of magnitude faster than in conventional capillary electrophoresis”… Also of interest is the possibility of using this technique in parallel, with their inhouse millipede technology (where IBM have created an array 4096 cantilevers on a 6.4mm x 6.4mm substrate).

Detection of molecules in the zeptomole range are no longer very unusual. Detection limits in this range (for nucleic acids) are routinely achieved with quantitative PCR. There are also several other assays out there with these ranges of sensitivity eg the bio-barcode assay being developed by Chad Mirkin and Nanosphere

0.1 zeptomoles are actually 100 yoctomoles…. Kinda reminds me of the work done by Andrew Briggs et al, when they created a yocto liter test tube! See here for the article http://www.rsc.org/publishing/journals/CC/article.asp?doi=b414247k

On the side, I love the word zepto, so much so, I named my then small goldfish Zepto. I think he’s now an atto sized goldfish!

Eoin

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