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Title
Japanese: 
English:Nanofluidic single-molecule sorting of DNA: a new concept in separation and analysis of biomolecule toward ultimate level performance 
Author
Japanese: 山本 貴富喜, 藤井 輝夫.  
English: Yamamoto Takatoki, Fujii Teruo.  
Language English 
Journal/Book name
Japanese: 
English:Nanotechnology 
Volume, Number, Page Vol. 21    No. 39    pp. 395502
Published date Oct. 2010 
Publisher
Japanese: 
English:IOP Publishing 
Conference name
Japanese: 
English: 
Conference site
Japanese: 
English: 
Official URL http://iopscience.iop.org/0957-4484/21/39/395502/
 
DOI https://doi.org/10.1088/0957-4484/21/39/395502
Abstract Separation and separation-based analysis of biomolecules are fundamentally important techniques in the field of biotechnology. These techniques, however, depend on stochastic processes that intrinsically involve uncertainty, and thus it is not possible to achieve 100% separation accuracy. Theoretically, the ultimate resolution and sensitivity should be realized in a single-molecule system because of the deterministic nature of single-molecule manipulation. Here, we have proposed and experimentally demonstrated the concept of a 'single-molecule sorter' that detects and correctly identifies individual single molecules, realizing the ultimate level of resolution and sensitivity for any separation-based technology. The single-molecule sorter was created using a nanofluidic network consisting of a single inlet channel that branches off into multiple outlet channels. It includes two major functional elements, namely a single-molecule detection and identification element and a flow path switching element to accurately separate single molecules. With this system we have successfully demonstrated the world's first single-molecule sorting using DNA as a sample molecule. In the future, we hope to expand the application of such devices to comprehensive sorting of single-proteins from a single cell. We also believe that in addition to the single-molecule sorting method reported here, other types of single-molecule based processes will emerge and find use in a wide variety of applications.

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