can't remember the name of the magazine...
Someone left it at the health club, and I read it while using the stairmaster. It was a glowing account of this new technology which could be extended to testing/measuring things at the molecular level.
The article specificaly mentioned Affymetrix (AFFX) which is using such an array for mapping out the human genome. A competitior is Human Genome Sciences (HGSI). I took a peak at both charts, but they had recent big gains so I didn't buy :-)
Another interesting article on another technology was posted in another thread. The URL is stale, so here are some exceprts:
nando.net
Microscopic Australian device is tiny biosensor
Copyright ) 1997 Nando.net
Copyright ) 1997 Reuter Information Service
CANBERRA (June 5, 1997 02:31 a.m. EDT) - Australian scientists, after a decade of secret research, on Thursday unveiled a microscopic machine that could revolutionize disease diagnosis and drug testing.
The nanomachine is a tiny biosensor that combines biology and physics -- with moving parts the size of molecules -- to detect molecules and identify minute amounts of substances.
Research team leader Bruce Cornell said the sensitive device can detect a range of substances, including drugs, hormones, viruses and pesticides and can identify gene sequences.
"This biosensor is a unique blend of the ability of biology to identify individual types of molecule in complex mixtures, with the speed, convenience and low cost of microelectronics," Cornell, from the Cooperative Research Center for Molecular Engineering and Technology, said in a statement.
[...]
The device will allow simple detection of almost all diseases within minutes from a small blood or saliva sample -- ending the need to wait days for pathology test results.
[...]
"We are designing them to be very simple to operate, we've even had
corporate lawyers working them," said Cornell.
Using a technique described as "biology on a stick," the machine essentially copies the body's sensing mechanisms by chemically tethering a synthetic membrane onto a piece of plastic.
[...] |
