This grant provides funding for research in creating a dip quill ?biological pen? or ?biopen? capable of writing arrays of individual biomolecules or ?bioinks? with ultrahigh resolution (i.e., below 10 nm). User-controlled charging of the biopen from a dye-labeled bio-inkwell is based on the molecular recognition and assembly properties of the bioink onto the biopen. The biopen recharge process permits control over the amount of bioink to be released in one individual writing session. By adjusting the bioink properties (i.e., concentration in the inkwell), the speed, accuracy and frequency of writing will be determined. Molecular biology and microscopy-based assays will be used to investigate biopen recharging and assess its writing performance. Experiments involving the analysis of the conditions that allow multiple writing sessions using the same biopen will also be investigated.
The results of this research will lead to advances in large-scale ?writing? of both organic and inorganic materials such as quantum dots and nanotubes with ultrahigh precision and at increased cost effectiveness. The applications of the proposed approach include drug screening of individual compounds and nanoelectronic systems miniaturization and integration. The primary goal of this work is to determine the optimum conditions that allow biopen recharging and assess its writing performance to ensure formation of bioink arrays in rapid time and with high accuracy. The proposed work will also contribute to a more fundamental understanding of the molecular recognition properties of the bioinks on biopens and account for a dynamic view of the driving forces determining the thermodynamic signatures for such recognition to occur.
