Microextraction in cancer research

By -
I have already arrived home after an interesting meeting in Madeira island regarding the HCV project dedicated to the study and characterization of human cancer volatome. The identification of biomarkers in several biological specimens is really essential since it will allow the development of analytical platforms for early detection of cancer or to study the disease progression. In this context, microextraction techniques can be used in two different scenarios. On the one hand, they can be used in the preliminary research to isolate potential candidates as biomarkers from several samples including urine or breath. On the other hand, once selected the appropriate candidates, microextraction techniques can be used to design screening and/or confirmation analytical methodologies for real-world tests.


The HCV project involves research groups form different countries. The consortium includess researchers from the Madeira University at Portugal, the National Centre for Cell Science at India, the University of Rostock at Germany, the Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics at India and the University of Alberta at Canada.

From the scientific point of view, I was truly impressed for the quality of the work developed until now by this consortium. Indeed, I witnessed the practical demonstration of a breath sampling device that allows the trapping/preconcentration of potential biomarkers before their analytical determination. From the personal point of view, they form a multidisciplinary gifted group with a great ability to transmit their passion for this research field. In short, they form a powerful network that will success, for sure, achieving their objectives.

Impressive views of Madeira island from a cable car
For me, these have been very good days as a time for sharing science (Prof Hossam Haick presentation was also truly inspiring) and personal experiences in a lovely place, Madeira. I would like to thank the "madeiran crew", headed by Prof. Câmara, for their attention and organization. Their contribution was essential to the development of the meeting.


Finally, thanks to Dr. Lasarte for coming with me to this travel and  congrats for his exceptional presentation about the potential of aptamers in Bioanalysis. He has taken up many challenges in these days.

From Microextraction, we wish HCV project every success.

RL

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Fabric phase sorptive extraction: a new generation green sample preparation strategy

By -
Image
by Dr. Abuzar Kabir, International Forensic Research Institute, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida International University, Miami, Florida, USA Fabric phase sorptive extraction (FPSE), the most recent member of the sorptive microextraction family, has innovatively incorporated both solid phase microextraction (SPME) and solid phase extraction (SPE) techniques into a single technology platform. FPSE utilizes permeable natural/synthetic fabrics e.g., cotton, polyester, fiber glass supports to chemically bind sol-gel hybrid inorganic-inorganic sorbents. A 5 cm2unit of coated fabric (2.5 cm x 2.0 cm) is typically used as the extraction media which can be inserted directly into the sample container. Extraction of the analytes is generally expedited by using a magnetic stir bar to diffuse the analyts into the sample matrix so that rapid mass transfer from the sample matrix to the extraction medium takes place.Once the mass transfer equilibrium between the FPSE media and
Read more

Gold coated magnetic beads for electrochemical detection

By -
Image
This post summarizes an interesting article, recently accepted for publication in Analytical Chemistry, which presents an innovative use of magnetic beads. Researchers from the Osaka Prefecture University at Japan have proposed the synthesis of magnetic microbeads covered with a smooth gold layer that are used for the electrochemical detection of streptavidin (1). The synthesis, which is deeply described in the manuscript, consists of three well defined steps. First of all, the magnetic beads are introduced in a colloidal gold dispersion containing Au-nanoparticles (Au-NPs). Thanks to the opposite zeta potential of both materials (microbeads are negatively charged while Au-NPs present a positive charge), their assembly takes place by electrostatic interactions. However, the Au-NPs are not connected to each other and therefore the electrical resistance of the microbeads is too high. In a second step, the modified microbeads are dispersed in an aqueous medium containing HAuCl 4 as
Read more

Rotating Disk Sorptive Extraction

By -
Image
by Prof. Dr. Pablo Richter, Department of Inorganic and Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Chile. The modern trends in analytical chemistry promote efficiency and green technology in sample preparation. In this context, our research team developed a new technique in 2009 that is capable of extracting pollutants from liquid samples on a rotating PTFE disk with one surface coated with an extraction phase [1]. The disk has embedded a miniature magnetic rod, which allows rotation. We have termed this procedure rotating-disk sorptive extraction (RDSE). RDSE is currently available in two configurations. In the classic version (Figure 1), the extraction phase is a polymeric film adhered to one side of the PTFE disk (configuration 1). In this configuration, polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), nylon and octadecyl (C18) have been used as the sorptive material for the extraction of low-polarity analytes (Log Kow between 3 and 7) [1-12]. However
Read more