Thin-film technology for direct visual detection of nucleic acid sequences: applications in clinical research

Abstract

Certain optical conditions permit the unaided eye to detect thickness changes on surfaces on the order of 20 Å, which are of similar dimensions to monomolecular interactions between proteins or hybridization of complementary nucleic acid sequences. Such detection exploits specific interference of reflected white light, wherein thickness changes are perceived as surface color changes. This technology, termed thin-film detection, allows for the visualization of subattomole amounts of nucleic acid targets, even in complex clinical samples. Thin-film technology has been applied to a broad range of clinically relevant indications, including the detection of pathogenic bacterial and viral nucleic acid sequences and the discrimination of sequence variations in human genes causally related to susceptibility or severity of disease.

Keywords::

• biosensor
• detection
• diagnosis
• optical immunoassay
• rapid
• thin film