The device you see to your right is a revolutionary piece of technology. Though it may not look like much, this handheld device is the future of preventing and treating diseases linked to DNA. It is a handheld DNA extractor that can extract DNA from Saliva, Sputum or Blood in minutes and still give full genetic data. Designed by University of Washington engineers and NanoFacture, the device uses microscopic probes that dip into a fluid sample and apply and electric field within the liquid. The field draws particles to concentrate around the surface of the tiny probe. Small DNA molecules will stick while larger particles will bounce away. Using this technology, it only takes 2 or 3 minutes to separate and purify DNA . The hand held model can separate 4 different samples at a time but it can be scaled up to handle 96 samples at a time. This type of technology will help greatly with gnome sequencing, disease diagnosis and forensic investigations.
NoS Themes
The Role of Curiosity
Science is Collaborative
The Importance of Repetition
Science is Based on Evidence
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This is such an interesting article! Its amazing what scientists are continuing to invent and discover, especially when something so beneficial to society can come in such a tiny box. Id like to add the NOS that Science is Tentative and Subject to Debate because they will always be able to improve this method and create new ways to gather DNA and analyze it.
ReplyDeleteWow, medical innovation is continuing to advance at a fast pace. The first human genome was sequenced in 2003 taking a team of scientists around three years. 10 years later we are down to using a small portable device. I wonder what medical technology we can expect for the future. I read an article on the top medical innovations of 2013 some astounding breakthroughs included Growing a human heart, Gene therapy, and New alternative ways to fight cancer.
ReplyDeletehttp://m.us.wsj.com/articles/a/mg=reno64-wsj
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ReplyDeleteWow this is really interesting. IT is really amazing all of the new things scientists are able to learn about DNA and the human body. Below is a link that talks more about the setup of DNA and the things scientisits have learned about DNA.
ReplyDeletehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_genome