[Source: Genome Web News] – Overcoming a major hurdle for nanopore sequencing, researchers from Arizona State University have designed a sensor that can distinguish all four individual bases of DNA.
Using a technique called tunneling, the bases pass through a tunnel gap with two electrodes. As they pass through, they form unique hydrogen bonds with chemical reagents, producing a current. The team was able to design the tunnel gap so that each base produced a unique current spike.
The study, which was published last week in Nano Letters, builds on previous work by the same team, which published a method for DNA translocation through a carbon nanotube in January (see In Sequence 1/12/2010).
For more information: In a Step Towards Nanopore Sequencing, Researchers Detect Electronic Signatures of each DNA Base