BE 625 - Biosensor Principles and Applications

Instructor: Daniel M. Jenkins
Office: Agricultural Science 415L
Office Hours: TBA & by appointment
Telephone: 956-6069
Email: danielje@hawaii.edu

Grading:	Written Summaries/Reports:	10%
	Discussion/Participation:	20%
	Exams (2):	20% each
	Final Project/ Presentation	30%

Textbook:

Chemical Sensors and Biosensors, Eggins, B.R., John Wiley & Sons, 2002.

Additional Readings and Course Notes:	Available on WebCT:
	(Log on with your UH Username and Password, then click 'MAN: Biosensor Principles & Appl')

Reference Texts (in order of value for this course):	Biochemistry (3rd ed), Mathews, C. K., K. E.van Holde, and K. G. Ahern, Addison Wesley Longman, Inc., 2000.
	The Art of Electronics (2nd ed), Horowitz, P. and W. Hill, Cambridge University Press, 1989.
	Chemical Sensors and Biosensors for Medical and Biological Applications, Spichiger-Keller, U. E., Wiley-VCH, 1998.
	Engineering Biosensors, Sadana, A., Academic Press, 2002.

Prerequisites:

(Instructor consent)

Catalog Description:

3 units. Elaboration of common biochemical interactions used to quantify biological molecules, and the electronic technologies used to detect them. Discussion of desirable properties of biosensors, miniaturization, and applications related to medicine, agriculture, bioproduction, and environment.

Course Content

1. Biosensor applications and issues
1. Overview of biosensor applications: medicine, agriculture, bioproduction, and environment (~1 period).
2. Desired characteristics of biosensors: reliability, simplicity, cost, and related parameters (~1 period).
3. Application notes: operating conditions, calibration, positive and negative controls, safety (~1 period).
2. Biochemical recognition
1. Chemical reactions: history of gravimetric and colorimetric reactions. Problems of specificity (~1 period).
2. Enzymes: biological catalysts, specificity, activity, storage/shelf life. Enzyme kinetics in solution and on a surface. Chemical equilibria- forcing an unfavorable reaction (~3 periods).
3. Cells: Signal transduction through chemoreception, membrane potential, cell metabolism, cytotoxicity, and transformed 'bioreporter' organisms (~3 periods).
4. Antibodies: Immunochemistry, binding affinity and kinetics; hapten synthesis (~3 periods).
5. Nucleic Acids (RNA and DNA): Basic biochemistry, hybridization; Amplification/self replication; Secondary Structure and folding (~3 periods).
6. Aptamer (oligonucleotide) based recognition and molecularly imprinted polymers (~1 period).
3. Common assaying formats
1. Labels: Radioisotopes, fluorophores, dyes, enzymes/substrates, liposomes, electroactive compounds (~2 periods).
2. ELISAs and nucleotide capture assays (~2 periods).
3. Immobilization of biorecognition element; conjugation of labels (~1 period).
4. Electrical signal transduction
1. Seismic (mass) and thermal sensors: Electromechanical resonance, electrochemical forces, Henry's and ideal gas laws; Surface acoustic wave (SAW) devices; atomic force microscopy; manometric sensors; thermometric detection (~4 periods).
2. Electrochemical sensors: Redox potentials, membrane potential, Gauss's Law, basic electrochemistry; conductimetric sensors; potentiometric sensors (ISE's and ISFETs); amperometric sensors; Charge sensing with FET (~8 periods).
3. Optical sensors: fundamentals of optics- sources (LED's, lasers, lamps), detectors (photodiodes, photomultiplier tubes, charge coupled devices), and optical circuits (filters, gratings, fiber optics); detection of absorbance, reflectance, and fluorescence; Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) based devices (~8 periods).