Studying component parts of living cells with carbon nanotube cellular probesOctober 05, 2007Turning carbon nanotubes into cellular probes with Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have shown great potential for use as cellular probes. As "nanopipes" they can be used to transport liquids to or from cells and inject solutions or drugs directly into individual cells and individual organelles within the cells. In addition, because of the small diameters of the carbon nanotubes induce little damage to cells upon penetration. By making these probes able to sense within the cells, information about chemical interactions within the cells could be found. Surface-enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) has this capability. A journal article just released on the nanotechnology website AZoNano examines making carbon nanotubes SERS active by functionalization with SERS active nanoparticles. This creates the possibility of extremely sensitive study and identification of components of cells. In addition, the nanotubes can be applied to a nanofluidic device where they can serve as an interconnection between a fluid reservoir and the cell, to both deliver and extract fluids. The effects of the fluids on the cells could be studied in situ.
The paper by Alia Sabur from Drexel University has been released as part of the open access journal, AZoJono*. The research found that carbon nanotubes and nanopipes can be used as SERS probes by two different methods that achieved identical results. Combining these SERS active nanotubes with already existing nano-probing techniques could enable the study of cells with single-molecule sensitivity. AZoNetwork Science News and Science Current Events Tag Cloud This tag cloud is a visual representation of term frequencies of random science news topics with common terms grouped together and emphasized by their display size. Obesity Tinnitus Muscular Dystrophy AIDS Beta Cells Mortality Cardiovascular Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide Child Abuse Fat Hormone Therapy Loneliness Stem Cell Transplant Biosensor Polycystic kidney disease Galaxy Formation Colon Polyps Drug Discovery Cassini Parkinson's disease Microfluidic device Diatoms Climate Warming Heart Muscle Chimpanzees
See More: Science News Tags | |||||||||||||||||||||
|
Related Carbon Nanotubes Current Events and Carbon Nanotubes News Articles Feather fibers fluff up hydrogen storage capacity Scientists in Delaware say they have developed a new hydrogen storage method - carbonized chicken feather fibers - that can hold vast amounts of hydrogen, a promising but difficult to corral fuel source, and do it at a far lower cost than other hydrogen storage systems under consideration. Penn materials scientist finds plumber's wonderland on graphene Engineers from the University of Pennsylvania, Sandia National Laboratories and Rice University have demonstrated the formation of interconnected carbon nanostructures on graphene substrate in a simple assembly process that involves heating few-layer graphene sheets to sublimation using electric current that may eventually lead to a new paradigm for building integrated carbon-based devices. Biomimetic-engineering design can replace spaghetti tangle of nanotubes in thermal materials Nanoelectromechanical systems (NEMS) devices have the potential to revolutionize the world of sensors: motion, chemical, temperature, etc. But taking electromechanical devices from the micro scale down to the nano requires finding a means to dissipate the heat output of this tiny gadgetry. Inexpensive plastic used in CDs could improve aircraft, computer electronics If one University of Houston professor has his way, the inexpensive plastic now used to manufacture CDs and DVDs will one day soon be put to use in improving the integrity of electronics in aircraft, computers and iPhones. UCLA researchers develop new method for producing transparent conductors Researchers at UCLA have developed a new method for producing a hybrid graphene-carbon nanotube, or G-CNT, for potential use as a transparent conductor in solar cells and consumer electronic devices. New nanotube coating enables novel laser power meter The U.S. military can now calibrate high-power laser systems, such as those intended to defuse unexploded mines, more quickly and easily thanks to a novel nanotube-coated power measurement device developed at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). UCLA physicists create world's smallest incandescent lamp In an effort to explore the boundary between thermodynamics and quantum mechanics - two fundamental yet seemingly incompatible theories of physics - a team from the UCLA Department of Physics and Astronomy has created the world's smallest incandescent lamp. Sandia researchers construct carbon nanotube device that can detect colors of the rainbow Researchers at Sandia National Laboratories have created the first carbon nanotube device that can detect the entire visible spectrum of light, a feat that could soon allow scientists to probe single molecule transformations, study how those molecules respond to light, observe how the molecules change shapes, and understand other fundamental interactions between molecules and nanotubes. Rice researchers unzip the future Scientists at Rice University have found a simple way to create basic elements for aircraft, flat-screen TVs, electronics and other products that incorporate sheets of tough, electrically conductive material. Nanoribbons from sliced open nanotubes: new, faster, more accurate method from Stanford A world of potential may lie tied up in graphene nanoribbons, particularly for electronics applications. But researchers have been hampered in their efforts to fully explore that potential because they had no reliable way of creating the large quantities of uniform nanoribbons needed to conduct extensive studies. More Carbon Nanotubes Current Events and Carbon Nanotubes News Articles |
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||