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Description
Bioanalytes such as protein, cells, and viruses provide vital information but are inherently challenging to measure with selective and sensitive detection. Gradient separation technologies can provide solutions to these challenges by enabling the selective isolation and pre-concentration of bioanalytes for improved detection and monitoring. Some fundamental aspects of two of

Bioanalytes such as protein, cells, and viruses provide vital information but are inherently challenging to measure with selective and sensitive detection. Gradient separation technologies can provide solutions to these challenges by enabling the selective isolation and pre-concentration of bioanalytes for improved detection and monitoring. Some fundamental aspects of two of these techniques, isoelectric focusing and dielectrophoresis, are examined and novel developments are presented. A reproducible and automatable method for coupling capillary isoelectric focusing (cIEF) and matrix assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS) based on syringe pump mobilization is found. Results show high resolution is maintained during mobilization and &beta-lactoglobulin; protein isoforms differing by two amino acids are resolved. Subsequently, the instrumental advantages of this approach are utilized to clarify the microheterogeneity of serum amyloid P component. Comprehensive, quantitative results support a relatively uniform glycoprotein model, contrary to inconsistent and equivocal observations in several gel isoelectric focusing studies. Fundamental studies of MALDI-MS on novel superhydrophobic substrates yield unique insights towards an optimal interface between cIEF and MALDI-MS. Finally, the fundamentals of isoelectric focusing in an open drop are explored. Findings suggest this could be a robust sample preparation technique for droplet-based microfluidic systems. Fundamental advancements in dielectrophoresis are also presented. Microfluidic channels for dielectrophoretic mobility characterization are designed which enable particle standardization, new insights to be deduced, and future devices to be intelligently designed. Dielectrophoretic mobilities are obtained for 1 µm polystyrene particles and red blood cells under select conditions. Employing velocimetry techniques allows models of particle motion to be improved which in turn improves the experimental methodology. Together this work contributes a quantitative framework which improves dielectrophoretic particle separation and analysis.
ContributorsWeiss, Noah Graham (Author) / Hayes, Mark A. (Thesis advisor) / Garcia, Antonio (Committee member) / Ros, Alexandra (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
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Description
A new challenge on the horizon is to utilize the large amounts of protein found in the atmosphere to identify different organisms from which the protein originated. Included here is work investigating the presence of identifiable patterns of different proteins collected from the air and biological samples for the purposes

A new challenge on the horizon is to utilize the large amounts of protein found in the atmosphere to identify different organisms from which the protein originated. Included here is work investigating the presence of identifiable patterns of different proteins collected from the air and biological samples for the purposes of remote identification. Protein patterns were generated using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Patterns created could identify high-traffic and low-traffic indoor spaces. Samples were collected from the air using air pumps to draw air through a filter paper trapping particulates, including large amounts of shed protein matter. In complimentary research aerosolized biological samples were collected from various ecosystems throughout Ecuador to explore the relationship between environmental setting and aerosolized protein concentrations. In order to further enhance protein separation and produce more detailed patterns for the identification of individual organisms of interest; a novel separation device was constructed and characterized. The separation device incorporates a longitudinal gradient as well as insulating dielectrophoretic features within a single channel. This design allows for the production of stronger local field gradients along a global gradient allowing particles to enter, initially transported through the channel by electrophoresis and electroosmosis, and to be isolated according to their characteristic physical properties, including charge, polarizability, deformability, surface charge mobility, dielectric features, and local capacitance. Thus, different types of particles are simultaneously separated at different points along the channel distance given small variations of properties. The device has shown the ability to separate analytes over a large dynamic range of size, from 20 nm to 1 μm, roughly the size of proteins to the size of cells. In the study of different sized sulfate capped polystyrene particles were shown to be selectively captured as well as concentrating particles from 103 to 106 times. Qualitative capture and manipulation of β-amyloid fibrils were also shown. The results demonstrate the selective focusing ability of the technique; and it may form the foundation for a versatile tool for separating complex mixtures. Combined this work shows promise for future identification of individual organisms from aerosolized protein as well as for applications in biomedical research.
ContributorsStaton, Sarah J. R (Author) / Hayes, Mark A. (Committee member) / Anbar, Ariel D (Committee member) / Shock, Everett (Committee member) / Williams, Peter (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
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Description
Microfluidics has shown great potential in rapid isolation, sorting, and concentration of bioparticles upon its discovery. Over the past decades, significant improvements have been made in device fabrication techniques and microfluidic methodologies. As a result, considerable microfluidic-based isolation and concentration techniques have been developed, particularly for rapid pathogen detection. Among

Microfluidics has shown great potential in rapid isolation, sorting, and concentration of bioparticles upon its discovery. Over the past decades, significant improvements have been made in device fabrication techniques and microfluidic methodologies. As a result, considerable microfluidic-based isolation and concentration techniques have been developed, particularly for rapid pathogen detection. Among all microfluidic techniques, dielectrophoresis (DEP) is one of the most effective and efficient techniques to quickly isolate and separate polarizable particles under inhomogeneous electric field. To date, extensive studies have demonstrated that DEP devices are able to precisely manipulate cells ranging from over 10 μm (mammalian cells) down to about 1 μm (small bacteria). However, very limited DEP studies on manipulating submicron bioparticles, such as viruses, have been reported.

In this dissertation, rapid capture and concentration of two different and representative types of virus particles (Sindbis virus and bacteriophage M13) with gradient insulator-based DEP (g-iDEP) has been demonstrated. Sindbis virus has a near-spherical shape with a diameter ~68 nm, while bacteriophage M13 has a filamentous shape with a length ~900 nm and a diameter ~6 nm. Under specific g-iDEP experimental conditions, the concentration of Sindbis virus can be increased two to six times within only a few seconds, using easily accessible voltages as low as 70 V. A similar phenomenon is also observed with bacteriophage M13. Meanwhile, their different DEP behavior predicts the potential of separating viruses with carefully designed microchannels and choices of experimental condition.

DEP-based microfluidics also shows great potential in manipulating blood samples, specifically rapid separations of blood cells and proteins. To investigate the ability of g-iDEP device in blood sample manipulation, some proofs of principle work was accomplished including separating two cardiac disease-related proteins (myoglobin and heart-type fatty acid binding protein) and red blood cells (RBCs). Consistent separation was observed, showing retention of RBCs and passage of the two spiked protein biomarkers. The numerical concentration of RBCs was reduced (~70 percent after one minute) with the purified proteins available for detection or further processing. This study explores and extends the use of the device from differentiating similar particles to acting as a sample pretreatment step.
ContributorsDing, Jie (Author) / Hayes, Mark A. (Thesis advisor) / Ros, Alexandra (Committee member) / Buttry, Daniel A (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2017
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Description
Dielectrophoresis (DEP) is a technique that influences the motion of polarizable particles in an electric field gradient. DEP can be combined with other effects that influence the motion of a particle in a microchannel, such as electrophoresis and electroosmosis. Together, these three can be used to probe properties

Dielectrophoresis (DEP) is a technique that influences the motion of polarizable particles in an electric field gradient. DEP can be combined with other effects that influence the motion of a particle in a microchannel, such as electrophoresis and electroosmosis. Together, these three can be used to probe properties of an analyte, including charge, conductivity, and zeta potential. DEP shows promise as a high-resolution differentiation and separation method, with the ability to distinguish between subtly-different populations. This, combined with the fast (on the order of minutes) analysis times offered by the technique, lend it many of the features necessary to be used in rapid diagnostics and point-of-care devices.

Here, a mathematical model of dielectrophoretic data is presented to connect analyte properties with data features, including the intercept and slope, enabling DEP to be used in applications which require this information. The promise of DEP to distinguish between analytes with small differences is illustrated with antibiotic resistant bacteria. The DEP system is shown to differentiate between methicillin-resistant and susceptible Staphylococcus aureus. This differentiation was achieved both label free and with bacteria that had been fluorescently-labeled. Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase-positive and negative Klebsiella pneumoniae were also distinguished, demonstrating the differentiation for a different mechanism of antibiotic resistance. Differences in dielectrophoretic behavior as displayed by S. aureus and K. pneumoniae were also shown by Staphylococcus epidermidis. These differences were exploited for a separation in space of gentamicin-resistant and -susceptible S. epidermidis. Besides establishing the ability of DEP to distinguish between populations with small biophysical differences, these studies illustrate the possibility for the use of DEP in applications such as rapid diagnostics.
ContributorsHilton, Shannon (Author) / Hayes, Mark A. (Thesis advisor) / Borges, Chad (Committee member) / Herckes, Pierre (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2019
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Description
Microfluidic systems have gained popularity in the last two decades for their potential applications in manipulating micro- and nano- particulates of interest. Several different microfluidics devices have been built capable of rapidly probing, sorting, and trapping analytes of interest. Microfluidics can be combined with separation science to address challenges of

Microfluidic systems have gained popularity in the last two decades for their potential applications in manipulating micro- and nano- particulates of interest. Several different microfluidics devices have been built capable of rapidly probing, sorting, and trapping analytes of interest. Microfluidics can be combined with separation science to address challenges of obtaining a concentrated and pure distinct analyte from mixtures of increasingly similar entities. Many of these techniques have been developed to assess biological analytes of interest; one of which is dielectrophoresis (DEP), a force which acts on polarizable analytes in the presence of a non-uniform electric fields. This method can achieve high resolution separations with the unique attribute of concentrating, rather than diluting, analytes upon separation. Studies utilizing DEP have manipulated a wide range of analytes including various cell types, proteins, DNA, and viruses. These analytes range from approximately 50 nm to 1 µm in size. Many of the currently-utilized techniques for assessing these analytes are time intensive, cost prohibitive, and require specialized equipment and technical skills.

The work presented in this dissertation focuses on developing and utilizing insulator-based dielectrophoresis (iDEP) to probe a wide range of analytes; where the intrinsic properties of an analyte will determine its behavior in a microchannel. This is based on the analyte’s interactions with the electrokinetic and dielectrophoretic forces present. Novel applications of this technique to probe the biophysical difference(s) between serovars of the foodborne pathogen, Listeria monocytogenes, and surface modified Escherichia coli, are investigated. Both of these applications demonstrate the capabilities of iDEP to achieve high resolution separations and probe slight changes in the biophysical properties of an analyte of interest. To improve upon existing iDEP strategies a novel insulator design which streamlines analytes in an iDEP device while still achieving the desirable forces for separation is developed, fabricated, and tested. Finally, pioneering work to develop an iDEP device capable of manipulating larger analytes, which range in size 10-250 µm, is presented.
ContributorsCrowther, Claire Victoria (Author) / Hayes, Mark A. (Thesis advisor) / Gile, Gillian H (Committee member) / Ros, Alexandra (Committee member) / Herckes, Pierre (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018
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Description
Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are a new set of porous materials comprised of metals or metal clusters bonded together in a coordination system by organic linkers. They are becoming popular for gas separations due to their abilities to be tailored toward specific applications. Zirconium MOFs in particular are known for their

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are a new set of porous materials comprised of metals or metal clusters bonded together in a coordination system by organic linkers. They are becoming popular for gas separations due to their abilities to be tailored toward specific applications. Zirconium MOFs in particular are known for their high stability under standard temperature and pressure due to the strength of the Zirconium-Oxygen coordination bond. However, the acid modulator needed to ensure long range order of the product also prevents complete linker deprotonation. This leads to a powder product that cannot easily be incorporated into continuous MOF membranes. This study therefore implemented a new bi-phase synthesis technique with a deprotonating agent to achieve intergrowth in UiO-66 membranes. Crystal intergrowth will allow for effective gas separations and future permeation testing. During experimentation, successful intergrown UiO-66 membranes were synthesized and characterized. The degree of intergrowth and crystal orientations varied with changing deprotonating agent concentration, modulator concentration, and ligand:modulator ratios. Further studies will focus on achieving the same results on porous substrates.
ContributorsClose, Emily Charlotte (Author) / Mu, Bin (Thesis director) / Shan, Bohan (Committee member) / Chemical Engineering Program (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-12
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Description
There is increasing interest and demand in biology studies for identifying and characterizing rare cells or bioparticle subtypes. These subpopulations demonstrate special function, as examples, in multipotent proliferation, immune system response, and cancer diagnosis. Current techniques for separation and identification of these targets lack the accuracy and sensitivity needed to

There is increasing interest and demand in biology studies for identifying and characterizing rare cells or bioparticle subtypes. These subpopulations demonstrate special function, as examples, in multipotent proliferation, immune system response, and cancer diagnosis. Current techniques for separation and identification of these targets lack the accuracy and sensitivity needed to interrogate the complex and diverse bioparticle mixtures. High resolution separations of unlabeled and unaltered cells is an emerging capability. In particular, electric field-driven punctuated microgradient separations have shown high resolution separations of bioparticles. These separations are based on biophysical properties of the un-altered bioparticles. Here, the properties of the bioparticles were identified by ratio of electrokinetic (EK) to dielectrophoretic (DEP) mobilities.

As part of this dissertation, high-resolution separations have been applied to neural stem and progenitor cells (NSPCs). The abundance of NSPCs captured with different range of ratio of EK to DEP mobilities are consistent with the final fate trends of the populations. This supports the idea of unbiased and unlabeled high-resolution separation of NSPCs to specific fates is possible. In addition, a new strategy to generate reproducible subpopulations using varied applied potential were employed for studying insulin vesicles from beta cells. The isolated subpopulations demonstrated that the insulin vesicles are heterogenous and showed different distribution of mobility ratios when compared with glucose treated insulin vesicles. This is consistent with existing vesicle density and local concentration data. Furthermore, proteins, which are accepted as challenging small bioparticles to be captured by electrophysical method, were concentrated by this technique. Proteins including IgG, lysozyme, alpha-chymotrypsinogen A were differentiated and characterized with the ratio factor. An extremely narrow bandwidth and high resolution characterization technique, which is experimentally simple and fast, has been developed for proteins. Finally, the native whole cell separation technique has also been applied for Salmonella serotype identification and differentiation for the first time. The technique generated full differentiation of four serotypes of Salmonella. These works may lead to a less expensive and more decentralized new tool and method for transplantation, proteomics, basic research, and microbiologists, working in parallel with other characterization methods.
ContributorsLiu, Yameng (Author) / Hayes, Mark A. (Thesis advisor) / Wang, Xu (Committee member) / Borges, Chad (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2020