Selective coatings create biological sensors from carbon nanotubes

Protein-encapsulated single-walled carbon nanotubes that alter their fluorescence in the presence of specific biomolecules could generate many new types of implantable biological sensors, say researchers from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign who developed the encapsulation technique.
In a paper accepted for publication in the journal Nature Materials, and posted on its Web site, the researchers showed the viability of their technique by creating a near-infrared nanoscale sensor that detects glucose. The sensor could be inserted into tissue, excited with a laser pointer, and provide real-time, continuous monitoring of blood glucose level.

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All News summaries for December 13, 2004