20 BiOTEchNOlOgy
New research could help end the
problem of adverse drug reactions
wo new research developments from beads or spheres made of silica (glass) across the
A new electrostatic-based
the USA are bringing the dream of surface of a DNA microarray and then observing
DNA microarray technique
personalised medicine a step nearer. the Brownian motion of the spheres provides
and an advance in T In the first, a team of researchers measurements of the electrical charges of the
pharmacogenomics could
with the US Department of Energy’s DNA molecules. These measurements can in turn
hail the end of adverse
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley be used to interrogate millions of DNA sequences
drug reactions. Sean
Lab) has invented a technique in which DNA or at a time. What’s more, these measurements can
Ottewell reports.
RNA assays can be read and evaluated without be observed and recorded with a simple
the need of elaborate chemical labelling or hand-held imaging device – even a cell phone
Une nouvelle technique
sophisticated instrumentation. camera will do.
de micromatrice d’ADN
Based on electrostatic repulsion – in which “The assumption has been that no detection
électrostatique et objects with the same electrical charge repel one technique could be more sensitive than fluorescent
une avancée dans la another – the technique is relatively simple and labelling, but this is completely untrue, as our
pharmacogénomique
inexpensive to implement, and can be carried out results have plainly demonstrated,” said Groves.
pourraient marquer la fin
in a matter of minutes. “We’ve shown that changes in surface charge
des effets indésirables
“One of the most amazing things about our density as a result of specific DNA hybridisation
des médicaments. Un
reportage de Sean
electrostatic detection method is that it requires can be detected and quantified with 50-picometer
Ottewell.
nothing more than the naked eye to read out sensitivity, single base-pair mismatch selectivity,
results that currently require chemical labelling and in the presence of complex backgrounds.
and confocal laser scanners,” said Jay Groves, a Furthermore, our electrostatic detection technique
Eine neue, auf chemist who led this research. “We believe this should render DNA and RNA microarrays
Elektrostatik beruhende
technique could revolutionise the use of DNA sufficiently cost effective for broad world-health
DNA-Mikroarray-Technik
microarrays for both research and diagnostics.” applications, as well as research.”
sowie Fortschritte bei
Groves and members of his research group Your susceptibility to a given disease
der Pharmakogenomik
Nathan Clack and Khalid Salaita have published and how your body will respond to drugs or
könnten das Ende
von Nebenwirkungen
a paper on their technique in the journal Nature other interventions is unique to your genetic
ankündigen. Sean Ottewell
Biotechnology which is now available online. makeup. Under a personalised medicine plan,
berichtet.
The paper is entitled Electrostatic readout of DNA treatment effectiveness is maximised and risks
microarrays with charged microspheres. are minimised by tailoring disease treatments
In their paper, Groves, Clack, and Salaita specifically to you. This requires the precise
describe how dispersing a fluid containing diagnostic tests and targeted therapies that can
thousands of electrically-charged microscopic stem from assays using a DNA microarray – a
Fig. 1. Second-
year student
Regies Cyriac
is one of 153
students who
will extract
their own
DNA through
collected saliva
samples to see
how they would
react to the
anti-tuberculosis
drug Isoniazid.
Photograph courtesy
of Joseph V Labolito/
Temple University
www.scientistlive.com
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