Sorting by Diffusion: An Asymmetric Obstacle Course for Continuous Molecular Separation

A separation technique employing a microfabricated sieve has been demonstrated by observing the motion of DNA molecules of different size. The sieve consists of a two-dimensional lattice of obstacles whose asymmetric disposition rectifies the Brownian motion of molecules driven through the device, c...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS 1999-11, Vol.96 (24), p.13762-13765
Main Authors: Chou, Chia-Fu, Bakajin, Olgica, Stephen W. P. Turner, Thomas A. J. Duke, Chan, Shirley S., Cox, Edward C., Craighead, Harold G., Austin, Robert H.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological Sciences
Biology
Brownian motion
Chemical Fractionation
Deoxyribonucleic acid
Diffusion
Diffusion coefficient
DNA
DNA - chemistry
DNA - isolation & purification
Electric fields
Electrophoresis
Gels
Molecules
Physics
Sieves
Silicon
Silicon nitrides
Trajectories
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Summary:A separation technique employing a microfabricated sieve has been demonstrated by observing the motion of DNA molecules of different size. The sieve consists of a two-dimensional lattice of obstacles whose asymmetric disposition rectifies the Brownian motion of molecules driven through the device, causing them to follow paths that depend on their diffusion coefficient. A nominal 6% resolution by length of DNA molecules in the size range 15-30 kbp may be achieved in a 4-inch (10-cm) silicon wafer. The advantage of this method is that samples can be loaded and sorted continuously, in contrast to the batch mode commonly used in gel electrophoresis.
ISSN:0027-8424
1091-6490
DOI:10.1073/pnas.96.24.13762