In the latest issue of Analyst, the front cover features work from Eiichi Tamiya of Osaka University, Japan, and co-workers. They have detected the influenza virus using an amplified DNA detection lateral flow immunoassay (ADLFIA).
The sensitivity of their method is comparable to agarose gel electrophoresis but can be observed by the naked eye. The authors say this work is a step forward in their efforts towards a battery powered portable PCR chip, and a battery powered portable PCR chip with ADLFIA has the potential to give the portable system a diagnostic test.
Detection of influenza virus using a lateral flow immunoassay for amplified DNA by a microfluidic RT-PCR chip
Naoki Nagatani, Keiichiro Yamanaka, Hiromi Ushijima, Ritsuko Koketsu, Tadahiro Sasaki, Kazuyoshi Ikuta, Masato Saito, Toshiro Miyahara and Eiichi Tamiya
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3422-3426
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN16294F
On the inside front cover Christopher Szakal and colleagues at NIST, USA who present a novel method for correlating and classifying ion-specific time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) images within a multispectral dataset by grouping images with similar pixel intensity distributions.
They say that this algorithm should extend well into three-dimensional datasets, allowing for classification of chemical species as a function of depth into a sample.
Automated correlation and classification of secondary ion mass spectrometry images using a k-means cluster method
Andrew R. Konicek, Jonathan Lefman and Christopher Szakal
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3479-3487
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN16122B
Both these cover articles are free to access for 6 weeks.
Don’t forget to take a look at this issue’s HOT articles too, featuring the use of ligand–receptor interactions in 13C MRI, metal–organic framework MIL-101(Cr) microcrystals for rapid magnetic solid-phase extraction, odorant biosensors, SR-FTIR micro-imaging of latent fingerprints, a new fluorescent and colorimetric Cu2+ probe, and an efficient fluorescent probe mimicking multiple logic gates and a molecular-keypad lock.