Oil-sealed femtoliter fiber-optic arrays for single molecule analysis.

ABSTRACT: This paper describes a novel method for fabricating and sealing high-density arrays of femtoliter reaction chambers. We chemically etch one end of a 2.3 mm diameter glass optical fiber bundle to create an array of microwells. We then use a contact printing method to selectively modify the surface of the material between microwells with a hydrophobic silane. This modification makes it possible to fill the wells with aqueous solution and then seal them with a droplet of oil, forming an array of isolated reaction chambers. Individual β-galactosidase molecules trapped in these reaction chambers convert a substrate into a fluorescent product that can be readily detected because a high local concentration of product is achieved. This binary readout can be used for ultra-sensitive measurements of

SUBMITTER: Zhang H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3419529 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature