The size and sensitivity of the micro-CIA would allow technicians to quickly test even trace amounts of anthrax or smallpox in the field. It could become a crucial part of a "lab-on-a-chip," where researchers can study genes and proteins in ways unimagined decades ago. Lee is particularly excited by the potential for advancements in medicine possible with a miniaturized microscope.
"You could put this device on the tip of an endoscope that could be guided inside a cancer patient," said Lee. "Doctors could then see how tumor cells behave in vivo. It would also be feasible to deliver drugs directly to the tumor cell, and then view how the cell responds to the drugs."
High-end confocal microscopes, which house several lasers, take up to a meter of desk space, can cost more than $1 million and typically require highly-trained operators to run them, said Lee. The high cost of owning and running confocal microscopes limits the amount of research that can be done with them, he said.
"My goal is to not only shrink the size of these microscopes, but to make them as easy and as cheap to use as a digital camera," said Lee. It is with a hint of populist sentiment that Lee began devising a teeny version of the confocal microscope, the micro-CIA. He envisions a future where confocal microscopy is as common as a Bunsen burner in academic and industry research labs.
Unlike scanning electron microscopes, which construct 3-D topological images of dead cells, confocal microscopes can capture images of nanoscale activity inside living cells. Confocal microscopes also allow researchers to focus on specific components inside the cell, such as DNA strands, or mitochondria.
Cell parts marked with a fluorescent dye are "excited" by the laser and emit light back at specific wavelengths. Mitochondria, for instance, emit
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Contact: Sarah Yang
scy@pa.urel.berkeley.edu
510-643-7741
University of California - Berkeley
13-Mar-2002