Archive for July, 2012

Issue 17 now online

31 Jul 2012

Analyst 2012, Vol. 136, Issue 17, front cover

Front cover: Branagan & Bohn, Analyst, 2012, 137, 3932-3939

Take a look at the latest issue of Analyst, with two great covers and host of HOT articles for you to enjoy.

The front cover features a HOT paper from our Editorial Board Chair, Paul Bohn, and his post-doc Sean Branagan. Paul and Sean demonstrate electrochemical imaging using enhanced optical transmission (EC-EOT) by applying it to several categories of electrochemical processes, using a spectral mapping technique that can be miniaturized. They say that in future applications, the enhanced spectral information offered by EOT may be useful for separating faradaic- and non-faradaic electrochemical signals as well as spatially resolving phenomena occurring at different locations relative to the electrified interface.

Plasmonic response of electrified metal–liquid interfaces during faradaic and non-faradaic reactions by enhanced optical transmission
Sean P. Branagan and Paul W. Bohn
Analyst, 2012,137, 3932-3939
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35488H

(more…)

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RSC Thermal Methods Group Event: 21st Nov 2012

26 Jul 2012

The RSC Thermal Methods Group are pleased to announce the date for their next event.

RSC Thermal Methods Group
Living and Breathing Calorimetry: Biological & Biopharmaceutical Applications of Isothermal Calorimetry
GlaxoSmithKline Ware
21st November 2012

This 1 day event offers an opportunity for attendees to hear the acceptance lecture that will be given by Prof. Beezer upon receipt of the Setaram-ICTAC award for Calorimetry at the ICTAC 2012 Congress in Japan. The meeting will also bring together a number of the world’s foremost practitioners of isothermal calorimetry who will explain the use of the technique in studying biological and biopharmaceutical materials.

More Information: Group Website
Contact: Dr Catherine Barnes, 01279633125, Catherine.x.barnes@gsk.com

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An amazing experience at the Gordon Research Conference on Bioanalytical Sensors

24 Jul 2012

By Pui Sai Lau, Web Writer

For anyone working in the area of sensing who is interested in attending a scientific conference in the near future, I strongly recommend att ending the GRC on Bioanalytical Sensors. Having attended two GRCs already, what I appreciate most about the GRC format is finding out about the latest discoveries, as much of the work presented is typically unpublished. Also, from my experiences, the conference set-up has been well-organized, the food superb and the location phenomenal! This year’s meeting was at Salve Regina University, Newport, Rhode Island, USA and was chaired by Steven Soper, supported by Vice-Chairs Susan Lunte and Paul Cremer.

Though several weeks have passed, I am still reflecting on much of the science that I have learned. The conference theme was focused on biosensor development, but the topics presented were diverse ranging from nanotechnology to microfluidics and engineered surfaces. While I am not permitted to reveal specifics presented at the conference, I must say I left inspired and have conjured up some potential collaborative ideas.

Participants of the GRC on Bioanalytical Sensors

It was also a great pleasure meeting fellow members of the biosensor community, and I have become good friends with some individuals whom I’ve met before. I also had the opportunity to meet many new people, including Vibhuti Patel, Deputy Editor for Analyst and Analytical Methods. As I am highly interested in potentially pursuing a career in editing and publishing, I was eager to ask Vibhuti about her job during a social hour. Vibhuti was very kind and patient to answer my many questions, and even offered me a position as a web writer for Analyst and Analytical Methods – journals that I already admire for publishing the latest, novel ideas in analytical, and bioanalytical sciences. So here I am, blogging for the RSC and delighted to be part of the team! Check out Vibhuti’s blog post for her thoughts on the GRC experience and links to some interesting papers recently published in RSC journals from fellow conference attendees.

Note: Thanks for the lovely comments, Pui Sai; glad to have met you and very pleased to have you as part of the team! Look out for more posts from Pui Sai in the near future. – Vibhuti

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HOT Article: En route to convenient point-of-care diagnosis for diabetics

24 Jul 2012

Post written by web writer Pui Sai Lau, McMaster University, Canada

Devadhasan & Kim, Analyst, 2012, Advance Article

Today millions of people suffer from type I and type II diabetes, and the associated mortality rate is on the rise. Diagnostic monitoring of glucose is critical to help control blood glucose levels in patients. Currently, various self-monitoring enzymatic strips, and electrochemical sensors are commercially available. However, the high expense, conditional accuracy, and invasiveness are hurdles, which still need to be overcome. Optical detection for glucose monitoring has made significant advancement over the years. Jasmine Pramila Devadhasan and Sanghyo Kim from Gachon University, South Korea have developed a glucose oxidase based sensor using the power of Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) imaging to detect glucose levels by photon count variation. Find out more about this discovery below.

Toward CMOS image sensor based glucose monitoring
Jasmine Pramila Devadhasan and Sanghyo Kim
Analyst, 2012, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35458F

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HOT articles in Analyst Issue 16

18 Jul 2012

In this Issue 16 of Analyst we have a dozen HOT articles for you to read. Topics range from bacteria detection, VOCs in human saliva, food quality, fluorescence sensing platforms, and glutathione biosensors.

A facile and sensitive detection of pathogenic bacteria using magnetic nanoparticles and optical nanocrystal probes

Jeon et al., Analyst, 2012, 137, 3609

All these papers will be free to access for 2 weeks.

A facile and sensitive detection of pathogenic bacteria using magnetic nanoparticles and optical nanocrystal probes
Jinmyoung Joo, Changyong Yim, Donghoon Kwon, Jaejin Lee, Hwa Hui Shin, Hyung Joon Cha and Sangmin Jeon
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3609
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35369E

Direct ionization of biological tissue for mass spectrometric analysis
Bin Hu, Ying-Han Lai, Pui-Kin So, Huanwen Chen and Zhong-Ping Yao
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3613
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN16223G

Sampling and characterisation of volatile organic compound profiles in human saliva using a polydimethylsiloxane coupon placed within the oral cavity
Helen J. Martin, Svetlana Riazanskaia and C. L. Paul Thomas
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3627
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35432B

Monitoring of chicken meat freshness by means of a colorimetric sensor array
Yolanda Salinas, José V. Ros-Lis, José-L. Vivancos, Ramón Martínez-Máñez, M. Dolores Marcos, Susana Aucejo, Nuria Herranz and Inmaculada Lorente
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3635
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35211G

Lu et al., Analyst, 2012, 137, 3644

A novel molecularly imprinted electrochemiluminescence sensor for isoniazid detection
Bowan Wu, Zhihua Wang, Zhonghua Xue, Xibin Zhou, Jie Du, Xiuhui Liu and Xiaoquan Lu
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3644
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35499C

Ultrasensitive colorimetric detection of heparin based on self-assembly of gold nanoparticles on graphene oxide
Xiuli Fu, Lingxin Chen and Jinhua Li
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3653
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35552C

Gold nanoparticle–enzyme conjugates based FRET for highly sensitive determination of hydrogen peroxide, glucose and uric acid using tyramide reaction
Xiangyi Huang, Tao Lan, Bocheng Zhang and Jicun Ren
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3659
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35503E

A homogeneous fluorescence sensing platform with water-soluble carbon nanoparticles for detection of microRNA and nuclease activity
Liyong Wang, Yongqiang Cheng, Hui Wang and Zhengping Li
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3667
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35396B

Piot et al., Analyst, 2012, 137, 3673

Confocal Raman microspectroscopy for skin characterization: a comparative study between human skin and pig skin
Sana Tfaili, Cyril Gobinet, Gwendal Josse, Jean-François Angiboust, Michel Manfait and Olivier Piot
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3673
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN16292J

Analysis of the Raman spectra of Ca²⁺-dipicolinic acid alone and in the bacterial spore core in both aqueous and dehydrated environments
Lingbo Kong, Peter Setlow and Yong-qing Li
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3683
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35468C

Transmission Raman measurement directly through packed corn kernels to improve sample representation and accuracy of compositional analysis
Kayeong Shin, Hoeil Chung and Chul-won Kwak
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3690
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35443H

Fabrication of glutathione photoelectrochemical biosensor using graphene–CdS nanocomposites
Xiaomei Zhao, Shiwei Zhou, Qingming Shen, Li-Ping Jiang and Jun-Jie Zhu
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3697
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35658A

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Analyst Issue 16 now online

17 Jul 2012

In this issue of Analyst we have two lovely covers for you to admire. On the outside we have an image from Sangmin Jeon and colleagues from Pohang University of Science and Technology, Korea. In their paper they report a new way of detecting Salmonella bacteria, a common cause of food poisoning. This simple, rapid, and cost-effective method used magnetic (superparamagnetic) nanoparticles and TiO₂ nanocrystals.

From Zhong-Ping Yao at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, China, comes the inside front cover. Together with a team from around China, they have been analyzing biological tissue at the molecular level. They have been able to directly ionize and analyze both plant and animal tissue by mass spectrometry under ambient conditions.

Direct ionization of biological tissue for mass spectrometric analysis
Bin Hu, Ying-Han Lai, Pui-Kin So, Huanwen Chen and Zhong-Ping Yao
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3613
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN16223G

These cover articles will be free to access for 6 weeks, so click through and have a read.

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Milking the benefits of multiple biomarkers

17 Jul 2012

An illegal hormone used to promote milk production could soon be easy to detect in dairy herds, thanks to scientists in the Netherlands.

The hormone – recombinant bovine somatotropin (rbST) – is licensed in some countries, but, despite having no influence on human health, its use is banned in Europe due to concerns over the health and welfare of treated animals.

The direct detection of rbST is hindered by its similarity to the natural growth hormone produced by the animals, bST. Its blood serum concentration fluctuates significantly, and both bST and rbST are present at low concentrations. Measurements by methods such as liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry also suffer from a small detection window because of the short half-life of rbST in the blood.

The hormone recombinant bovine somatotropin is licensed in some countries, but its use is banned in EuropeT

To read the full article visit Chemistry World.

Multiplex flow cytometric immunoassay for serum biomarker profiling of recombinant bovine somatotropin

Nathalie Gabriëlle Esther Smits, Susann Ludwig, Grisha Van der Veer, Monique Bremer and Michel W F Nielen
Analyst, 2012, Accepted Manuscript
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35226E

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Better security with through-barrier detection using SORS

11 Jul 2012

A team working in the UK have demonstrated that spatially offset Raman spectroscopy (SORS) using short wave infrared can detect chemicals through physical barriers such as containers, which is a step forward in detection and security.

The performance of SORS compared to conventional Raman (CR) spectroscopy to detect the sub-surface layer beneath a barrier is better because of its ability to suppress fluorescence and Raman scattering from the target container. However, there is still a problem with the fluorescence of the target chemical beneath, as this can mask the useful Raman signature that can be used to identify the contents.

Schematic diagram of experimental configuration used for 1064nm SORS measurements

To read the full article visit Chemistry World.

Short-wave infrared excited spatially offset Raman spectroscopy (SORS) for through-barrier detection

Rebecca J. Hopkins , Suzanne H. Pelfrey and Neil C. Shand
Analyst, 2012, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35681C

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HOT articles in Analyst

09 Jul 2012

Take a look at some of the HOT articles we’ve published recently in Analyst! These papers cover a wide variety of topics such as glucose detection, skin characterization, and bacterial spore analysis. They will be free to access for 2 weeks.

Ultrasensitive colorimetric detection of heparin based on self-assembly of gold nanoparticles on graphene oxide
Xiuli Fu, Lingxin Chen and Jinhua Li
Analyst, 2012, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35552C

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HOT articles in Issue 15

04 Jul 2012

HOT article: Misra et al., Analyst, 2012, 137, 3470-3478

This issue’s HOT articles feature 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.

All these papers will be free to access for 2 weeks.

Generating contrast in hyperpolarized ¹³C MRI using ligand–receptor interactions
Kayvan R. Keshari, John Kurhanewicz, Jeffrey M. Macdonald and David M. Wilson
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3427-3429
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35406C

Facile magnetization of metal–organic framework MIL-101 for magnetic solid-phase extraction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in environmental water samples
Shu-Hui Huo and Xiu-Ping Yan
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3445-3451
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35429B

Dissociated neuronal culture expressing ionotropic odorant receptors as a hybrid odorant biosensor—proof-of-concept study
Norio Tanada, Takeshi Sakurai, Hidefumi Mitsuno, Douglas J. Bakkum, Ryohei Kanzaki and Hirokazu Takahashi
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3452-3458
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35058K

Detection of microscopic particles present as contaminants in latent fingerprints by means of synchrotron radiation-based Fourier transform infra-red micro-imaging
A. Banas, K. Banas, M. B. H. Breese, J. Loke, B. Heng Teo and S. K. Lim
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3459-3465
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35355E

A new fluorescent and colorimetric probe for Cu²⁺ in live cells
Wei-Yong Liu, Hai-Ying Li, Bao-Xiang Zhao and Jun-Ying Miao
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3466-3469
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35559K

Fluorescent probe mimicking multiple logic gates and a molecular keypad lock upon interaction with Hg²⁺ and bovine serum albumin
Arvind Misra, Priyanka Srivastava and Mohammad Shahid
Analyst, 2012, 137, 3470-3478
DOI: 10.1039/C2AN35561B

Don’t forget to take a look at the cover articles from Issue 15.

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