title: Nanostructured surfaces for enhanced protein detection toward clinical diagnostics.
abstract: "Label-free" biomolecule sensors for detection of inflammatory cardiovascular biomarker associated with vulnerable coronary vascular plaque rupture were designed and fabricated using micro- and nanotextured polystyrene (PS) polymer structures that functioned as sensing elements coupled with electronic measurement equipment. We demonstrated that scaling down the surface texturing from the micro- to the nanoscale enhances the amplitude of the measured detected signal strength. We believe that the nanoscale fiber morphology provides size-matched spaces for trapping and immobilizing the protein biomolecule, resulting in improved detection signal strength. We selected PS as the model system and demonstrated the detection of human serum C-reactive protein. We employed these findings in designing a platform "lab-on-a-chip" protein sensor. Comparative studies were performed on PS textured surfaces of two different surface features: a PS microsphere mat and an electrospun PS nanofiber matrix.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  In this study, nanotechnology-based biosensors for vulnerable coronary vascular plaque rupture were designed and fabricated using micro- and nanotextured polystyrene polymer structures. The authors demonstrated that scaling down the surface texturing from the micro- to the nanoscale enhances the sensitivity of this detection method.
authors.affiliation: Department of Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering, Center for Solid State Electronics Research, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287, USA.
authors.forename: Vindhya
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Kunduru
authors.forename: Manish
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bothara
authors.forename: Jason
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Grosch
authors.forename: Sukalyan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sengupta
authors.forename: Prabir K
authors.initials: PK
authors.lastname: Patra
authors.forename: Shalini
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Prasad
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015374:Biosensing Techniques / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D044085:Microfluidics / Q000379:methods; D057139:Nanofibers / Q000737:chemistry; D049329:Nanostructures / Q000737:chemistry; D036103:Nanotechnology / Q000379:methods*; D011137:Polystyrenes / Q000737:chemistry; D011506:Proteins / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D011137:Polystyrenes; D011506:Proteins