Understanding DNA Electrophoresis in Colloidal Crystals
2014-08
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Understanding DNA Electrophoresis in Colloidal Crystals
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2014-08
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The electrophoretic separation of DNA (deoxyribose nucleic acid) has been a target of engineering and optimization since its inception. In the following pages, I describe an engineering investigation into the physics of DNA separation in colloidal crystals. Colloidal crystals are formed through self-assembly of micron-sized spheres, suspended as a colloidal suspension. In this work, we follow the pioneering separation work of Zeng and Harrison, seeking to better understand the properties that allow for the observed enhanced separations of small, <1 kilo base-pair (kbp) DNA and large (>10 kbp) DNA. I demonstrate some key insights required to fabricate these devices, then move on to evaluating their performance. In the first section I tackle the quality of the crystal and its potential effects on separation performance. In the second section, I attempt to explain the order of magnitude better separation behavior between agarose gels and colloidal crystals by evaluating the mobility regimes for large DNA. At the end of this work, I have included a discussion on the future place of colloidal crystals as a separation medium.
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University of Minnesota Ph.D. dissertation. August 2014. Major: Material Science and Engineering. Advisor: Kevin Dorfman. 1 computer file (PDF); vii, 85 pages.
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King, Scott. (2014). Understanding DNA Electrophoresis in Colloidal Crystals. Retrieved from the University Digital Conservancy, https://hdl.handle.net/11299/191326.
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