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Wednr&esday, June i. 16 - Te Mich gn Day - 11

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By Brian Campbell
Daily Staff Reporter
University researchers are trying to
eliminate the laborious methods of cur-
rent DNA analysis by shrinking the
biology laboratory onto a sngle
V icrochip.
"Our goal is to automate the
process by, in essence, shrinking the
lab to fit on one silicon microchip,"
said Assistant Prof. of Human
Genetics, David Burke. "Integrating
everything on one chip minimizes the
need for human interaction and maxi-
mizes efficiency and processing
speed."
Presently, DNA analysis involves
several procedures performed by highly
skilled technicians - a process that can
Wake days. But soon, using the
microchip and a small blood sample,
doctors may be able to immediately
determine if a patient has strep throat,
the flu, a healthy baby, or a risk of
developing breast cancer.
The microchip consists of five
microfabricated components occupying
a silicon wafer. Drops of extracted
DNA, from any organism, are mixed
with an enzyme solution and moved
through each component using built-in
microscopic heaters. The heaters raise
the temperature on one side of a drop,
creating a pressure difference, which
pushes the drop in the direction of

a lze "
lower pressure.
Assistant Prof. of Chemical
Engineering Mark Burns said, "We
broke the process into five parts: injec-
tion, movement and mixing, reaction
system, separation, and a detector,
which produces the series of bands on
a film."
Although researchers have encoun-
tered some technical problems related
to handling such tiny amounts of liquid,
work is now under way to further
reduce the microchip's size.
A complete map of the human
genome is predicted to be 95 percent
finished in a few years. This map is of
the archetypal DNA sequence - the
kind of sequence John or Jane Doe
would have - Burke said.
"The interesting genetic question is:
how do we differ from the average?"
Burke asked.
If further research and development
goes according to plan, a functioning
microchip could be available in five
years. However, the future cost of the
microchip is unknown.
If the device was perfected and
available at a low cost, its applications
might be extensive. "Agriculture could
benefit so that a farmer could breed
his or her best animals and plants. Or
home gardeners could select their own
flowers by predicted color," Burke
said.

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