9521668 Garcia This proposal is on research to study the synthesis of immobilized soft metal ion systems and the conditions that will provide the capability of reversible, specific binding of biotin labeled biopolymers and cells. The investigators would develop paramagnetic beads containing immobilized silver or platinum to be used as aids in DNA manipulations and for cell sorting and recovery. A second technique to be studied is the immobilization of soft metal ions onto polyacrylamide gel films for cell sorting and enzyme linked immunosorbant assays (ELISA). Also, a systematic characterization of the two separation techniques by examining silver loading, the chemical nature of the immobilized silver to detect the presence of oxidized silver, and the chemistry of immobilization is proposed. ***
