Interactions of DNA with graphene and sensing applications of graphene field-effect transistor devices: A review

Graphene field-effect transistors (GFET) have emerged as powerful detection platforms enabled by the advent of chemical vapor deposition (CVD) production of the unique atomically thin 2D material on a large scale. DNA aptamers, short target-specific oligonucleotides, are excellent sensor moieties for GFETs due to their strong affinity to graphene, relatively short chain-length, selectivity, and a high degree of analyte variability. However, the interaction between DNA and graphene is not fully understood, leading to questions about the structure of surface-bound DNA, including the morphology of DNA nanostructures and the nature of the electronic response seen from analyte binding. This review critically evaluates recent insights into the nature of the DNA graphene interaction and its affect on sensor viability for DNA, small molecules, and proteins with respect to previously established sensing methods. We first discuss the sorption of DNA to graphene to introduce the interactions and forces acting in DNA based GFET devices and how these forces can potentially affect the performance of increasingly popular DNA aptamers and even future DNA nanostructures as sensor substrates. Next, we discuss the novel use of GFETs to detect DNA and the underlying electronic phenomena that are typically used as benchmarks for characterizing the analyte response of these devices. Finally, we address the use of DNA aptamers to increase the selectivity of GFET sensors for small molecules and proteins and compare them with other, state of the art, detection methods.     

Fat crystallisation at oil–water interfaces

This review focuses on recent advances in the understanding of lipid crystallisation at or in the vicinity of an interface in emulsified systems and the consequences regarding stability, structure and thermal behaviour. Amphiphilic molecules such as emulsifiers are preferably adsorbed at the interface. Such molecules are known for their ability to interact with triglycerides under certain conditions. In the same manner that inorganic crystals grown on an organic matrix see their nucleation, morphology and structure controlled by the underlying matrix, recent studies report a templating effect linked to the presence of emulsifiers at the oil/water interface. Emulsifiers affect fat crystallisation and fat crystal behaviour in numerous ways, acting as impurities seeding nucleation and, in some cases, retarding or enhancing polymorphic transitions towards more stable forms. This understanding is of crucial importance for the design of stable structures within emulsions, regardless of whether the system is oil or water continuous. In this paper, crystallisation mechanisms are briefly described, as well as recent technical advances that allow the study of crystallisation and crystal forms. Indeed, the study of the interface and of its effect on lipid crystallisation in emulsions has been limited for a long time by the lack of in-situ investigative techniques. This review also highlights reported interfacial effects in food and pharmaceutical emulsion systems. These effects are strongly linked to the presence of emulsifiers at the interface and their effects on crystallisation kinetics, and crystal morphology and stability.     

Adult zebrafish as a model organism for behavioural genetics

Recent research has demonstrated the suitability of adult zebrafish to model some aspects of complex behaviour. Studies of reward behaviour, learning and memory, aggression, anxiety and sleep strongly suggest that conserved regulatory processes underlie behaviour in zebrafish and mammals. The isolation and molecular analysis of zebrafish behavioural mutants is now starting, allowing the identification of novel behavioural control genes. As a result of this, studies of adult zebrafish are now helping to uncover the genetic pathways and neural circuits that control vertebrate behaviour.     

Mass spectrometry imaging as a tool for surgical decision‐making

Despite significant advances in image‐guided therapy, surgeons are still too often left with uncertainty when deciding to remove tissue. This binary decision between removing and leaving tissue during surgery implies that the surgeon should be able to distinguish tumor from healthy tissue. In neurosurgery, current image‐guidance approaches such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) combined with neuronavigation offer a map as to where the tumor should be, but the only definitive method to characterize the tissue at stake is histopathology. Although extremely valuable information is derived from this gold standard approach, it is limited to very few samples during surgery and is not practically used for the delineation of tumor margins. The development and implementation of faster, comprehensive, and complementary approaches for tissue characterization are required to support surgical decision‐making – an incremental and iterative process with tumor removed in multiple and often minute biopsies. The development of atmospheric pressure ionization sources makes it possible to analyze tissue specimens with little to no sample preparation. Here, we highlight the value of desorption electrospray ionization as one of many available approaches for the analysis of surgical tissue. Twelve surgical samples resected from a patient during surgery were analyzed and diagnosed as glioblastoma tumor or necrotic tissue by standard histopathology, and mass spectrometry results were further correlated to histopathology for critical validation of the approach. The use of a robust statistical approach reiterated results from the qualitative detection of potential biomarkers of these tissue types. The correlation of the mass spectrometry and histopathology results to MRI brings significant insight into tumor presentation that could not only serve to guide tumor resection, but that is also worthy of more detailed studies on our understanding of tumor presentation on MRI. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Optogalvanic spectroscopy of metastable states in Yb+

The metastable ²F_7/2 and ²D_3/2 states of Yb⁺ are of interest for applications in metrology and quantum information and also act as dark states in laser cooling. These metastable states are commonly repumped to the ground state via the 638.6 nm ²F_7/2–¹D[5/2]_5/2 and 935.2?nm ²D_3/2–³D[3/2]_1/2 transitions. We have performed optogalvanic spectroscopy of these transitions in Yb⁺ ions generated in a discharge. We measure the pressure broadening coefficient for the 638.6 nm transition to be 70±10?MHz?mbar^?1. We place an upper bound of 375 MHz/nucleon on the 638.6 nm isotope splitting and show that our observations are consistent with theory for the hyperfine splitting. Our measurements of the 935.2 nm transition extend those made by Sugiyama et al., showing well-resolved isotope and hyperfine splitting (Sugiyama and Yoda in IEEE Trans. Instrum. Meas. 44: 140, 1995). We obtain high signal-to-noise, sufficient for laser stabilisation applications (Streed et al. in Appl. Phys. Lett. 93: 071103, 2008).     

My Life in Nuclear Physics, Photography, and Opera

I sketch my life as an experimental nuclear physicist, beginning as a graduate student at Harvard University from 1948 to 1951, then as a postdoctoral fellow at the Cavendish Laboratory from 1951 to 1952, and finally as a faculty member at the University of Minnesota from 1952 until my retirement in 1991. I also carried out research at the Niels Bohr Institute in Copenhagen, Indiana University, and Los Alamos National Laboratory, and I participated in a number of summer schools and international conferences on nuclear physics. I also have worked in photography and opera. Over the years, I met and collaborated with many people in many walks of life who became friends for life.     

Machine interference in automated cells

This paper presents a simulation and an analytical modeling of the machine interference problem in manufacturing cells. Each machine experiences two types of stoppage which are to be served by a robot. Several combinations of the distributions of the stoppages, service distributions, and service disciplines are studied. We determine the optimal number of machines assigned to the robot under different operating conditions such that the expected total cost of the manufacturing cell is minimized.This research is based on Mr. Norton's M.S. thesis, which was conducted at Rutgers.