Mutation Finder
Researchers create more mobile, efficient system to detect genes associated with cancers
Summer 2011 · Comment ·
A gene linked to certain cancers just got a little easier to find, thanks to researchers in the College of Engineering and College of Science.
Assistant Professor Samir Iqbal and Assistant Professor Shawn Christensen devised a system to electronically detect a gene mutation implicated in 90 percent of pancreatic cancers and frequently linked to lung cancer. Their method involves running tiny amounts of blood over nanomaterials.
鈥�There are many versions, or alleles, of a given gene within a population,鈥� Dr. Christensen explains. 鈥淧eople can have slightly different variations of a gene due to mutation and genetic recombination. Some mutations can predispose an individual to a given disease, while others may lead to protection from the same or different disease.鈥�
The research could help physicians prescribe therapy and healthy behaviors that may delay or eliminate the risk for patients predisposed to these diseases.
鈥�Our work could be used to detect any genetic marker,鈥� Dr. Iqbal says. 鈥淚f a disease has a known genetic component, we can tell you whether you have the gene that might lead to the disease.鈥�
Other processes accomplish similar results, but they require the detection of fluorescent dyes or radioactivity, more labor, or bulky, expensive machinery. In contrast, Iqbal and Christensen鈥檚 screening process uses only a quarter of a milliliter of blood. It also improves detection speed, sensitivity, and portability.
鈥�We can incorporate into a small handheld device the electrical detection process we have demonstrated,鈥� Iqbal says. 鈥淭he mobile technology can then be used outside the laboratory to ascertain if someone carries specific genes or not, just like a glucometer currently does.鈥�