In an effort to improve the scientific and medical communities? ability to access epigenetic information, this project aims to develop a label-free method to detect epigenetically modified bases in DNA. The method that will be developed relies on the use of a carbon nanotube charge-sensor integrated with a solid-state nanopore. DNA will be driven through the nanopore by electrophoresis, causing it to pass by the nanotube in a serial fashion. By monitoring changes in the electrical current through the nanotube as DNA passes through the nanopore, nucleotides will be detected based on their charge. There are two specific aims for this project. Firstly, it aims to use a carbon nanotube-based charge sensor aligned to a nanopore to detect unlabeled epigenetically-modified nucleotides in a DNA strand as it traverses the nanopore. Secondly, it aims to use a nanotube-based sensor to categorize nucleotides in a DNA strand into one of two groups based on their charge. The methods developed in this project have the potential to lead to faster and simpler profiling of epigenetic information, allowing for its more routine use in medical diagnostics.
Although most cells in the body have the same set of genetic instructions contained in DNA, epigenetic marks are added to the DNA during development to tell the cells which instructions to read, leading to the variety of cells that make up the body. To better understand this process, which plays a role in healthy development, as well as diseases such as cancer, there is a need for better tools and methods to read epigenetic information. This project aims to develop a new way to read this information rapidly and inexpensively.
