Microengineering in Biotechnology
Microelectronic engineering has revolutionized electronics, providing new, faster and cheaper ways of doing things – and now the same technology is being applied to biotechnology and molecular biology. As sample volume is reduced, reaction speed and
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IN
M O L E C U L A R B I O L O G Y TM
Series Editor John M. Walker School of Life Sciences University of Hertfordshire Hatfield, Hertfordshire, AL10 9AB, UK
For other titles published in this series, go to www.springer.com/series/7651
Microengineering in Biotechnology Edited by
Michael P. Hughes and Kai F. Hoettges University of Surrey, Guildford, UK
Editors Michael P. Hughes University of Surrey Centre for Biomedical Engineering Guildford Duke of Kent Building United Kingdom GU2 7TE [email protected]
Kai F. Hoettges University of Surrey Centre for Biomedical Engineering Guildford Duke of Kent Building United Kingdom GU2 7TE [email protected]
ISSN 1064-3745 e-ISSN 1940-6029 ISBN 978-1-58829-381-7 e-ISBN 978-1-60327-106-6 DOI 10.1007/978-1-60327-106-6 Library of Congress Control Number: 2009933982 # Humana Press, a part of Springer ScienceþBusiness Media, LLC 2010 All rights reserved. This work may not be translated or copied in whole or in part without the written permission of the publisher (Humana Press, c/o Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, 233 Spring Street, New York, NY 10013, USA), except for brief excerpts in connection with reviews or scholarly analysis. Use in connection with any form of information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed is forbidden. The use in this publication of trade names, trademarks, service marks, and similar terms, even if they are not identified as such, is not to be taken as an expression of opinion as to whether or not they are subject to proprietary rights. While the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of going to press, neither the authors nor the editors nor the publisher can accept any legal responsibility for any errors or omissions that may be made. The publisher makes no warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein. Printed on acid-free paper springer.com
Preface Just as the twentieth century witnessed developments both in electronic engineering and molecular biology which have revolutionized the way we live, so the twenty-first century has been predicted to see the ever-increasing blurring of the line between them. Since so many biochemical procedures occur at the molecular level, microelectronic engineering offers the opportunity to reduce the way in which such procedures are performed to the same level. The advantages of miniaturized analysis are manifold; reducing the sample volume increases reaction speed and detector sensitivity whilst reducing sample and reagent requirements and device cost. Some of the world’s largest technology companies are already involved in the development of so-called laboratories on a chip, and the field is set for rapid expansion in the next decades. The market is vast – having potential to provide, for example, bench-top versions of large and expensive equipment that could make analyses like flow cytometry as commonly available as gel el
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