Nanoscale Biomedical Sensors

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Nanoscale Biomedical Sensors

• Detection of E. coli Using Nanoscale Biomedical
  Sensors
• Benjamin Mabbott

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Overview

• E. coli Background Information
• Goal of Research
• Methodology
• Need for Numeric Simulation
• Current Problems
• Possible Solutions
• Questions?

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Why E. Coli?

• 73,000 cases of illnesses/infection
• 61 Deaths per year
• Loss of 6.9 billion dollars per year, due to food
  borne pathogenic diseases.
• Srinivasan, B. Tung, S. Yanbun, L. Varshney,
  M. Simulation of an Electrical Impedance Based
  Microfluidic Biosensor for Detection of E. coli
  cells. Excerpt from the Proceedings of the COMSOL
  Users Conference 2006 Boston.

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Goal of Research

• The goal of the research is to devise a means of
  rapidly and accurately detecting singular
  pathogenic bacteria and viruses.

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Methodology

• Flow a solution of Manitol and E. Coli through a
  micro channel
• Solution flows over a series of 10 micron wide
  electrodes
• Presence of E. Coli in solution shifts impedance
  graph.

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Need for Numeric Simulation

• Numeric simulation is necessary in order to
  determine the effects of many variables that can
  not be directly measured via experiment.
• Effect of superparamagnetic nanospheres.
• Effect of antibody coating of nanospheres.
• Effect of arrangement and position of sample.

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Current Problems

• Complex but realistic model versus simple and
  ideal model.
• Computational limitations.
• Scaling issues.

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Possible Solutions

• Compromise between realistic and ideal models.
• Simplify models just enough to allow computations
  be solved.
• Guesstimate some numbers/run multiple simulations
  to cover all possible cases.

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QUESTIONS?