Technological advancements towards paper-based biomolecular diagnostics

Clinically tractable diagnostics must be low-cost, rapid, sensitive, easy to use, and adaptable to new targets. With its rational design, synthetic biology holds promise for developing diagnostic technologies that can address these needs. In particular, progress in synthetic biology has led to improved circuit-building abilities and a large collection of biomolecular sensors. However, these technologies fundamentally require transcription and translation, limiting their applicability to cellular contexts In vitro cell-free expression systems that contain transcription and translation machinery provide the environment necessary for biologically-based technologies to function independently of living cells. Our lab recently developed a paper-based system for cell-free gene expression, which utilizes cell-free extracts that are freeze-dried on to paper and other porous substrates to allow for long-term preservation of synthetic circuits at room temperature. Our platform represents a scalable, cost-effective technology that is easy to use and is compatible with synthetic biology tools. In this dissertation, I present several advancements to this diagnostic platform that are geared towards improving the system’s clinical tractability. In the context of developing a diagnostic for Zika virus that could be deployed in low-resource settings, I demonstrate improvements to diagnostic sensitivity and rapid sample processing that allow for detection of low femtomolar quantities of active virus directly from blood plasma samples. I also describe preliminary results towards a streamlined one-pot amplification-sensing reaction, and propose the development of a paper-based diagnostic for antibiotic susceptibility testing

Defining Spyware: Necessary or Dangerous

State legislation attempting to define and proscribe spyware has been criticized for either being under-inclusive or over-inclusive. This article provides an overview of the technology that is commonly considered spyware and examines the potential effects of attempting to legislatively define and curtail spyware as a specific technology. It concludes that a more appropriate method to regulate spyware would focus on prohibiting conduct associated with placing monitoring software on a computer and enforcing existing law regarding such conduct

Body Worlds: An Exhibit That Really Gets Under the Skin

Undeniably, Body Worlds elicits responses from millions of people worldwide, whether they are profoundly inspired, or deeply repulsed. By this standard, Gunther von Hagens’ Body Worlds clearly is art, and he is thus entitled to his own “product of human creativity.” Laura Lloyd-Braff is a sophomore with a major in history and a minor in French. Although her long-time interests include violin, performing, and tennis, her most current passion is traveling. By 2008, she plans to travel to Israel, France, and Ghana. After graduating, Laura has aspirations to join the Peace Corps and eventually become a public defense lawyer

1-3 dipolar cycloadditions of nitrile ylides

1-3 dipolar cycloaddition is the union of a 1-3 dipole, a-b-c, with a system containing a multiple bond, d-e, to form a five membered ring. In this scheme, center c contains an electron sextet, and concommitant positive charge, while center c contains an unshared pair of electrons and is the anionic center of the dipole. In the cycloaddition reaction, the 1-3 dipole and the multiple bond system (called the dipolarophile), collapse to form a five membered ring with loss of all formal charges. All together, eighteen 1-3 dipolar systems have been mentioned. The synthetic potential with respect to heterocyclic adducts is fantastic. In fact, this reaction may well prove to be as broad in scope as the Diels-Alder. Below are mentioned a few examples of adducts available through 1-3 dipolar cycloaddition. To date, more than one thousand analyzed adducts have been synthesized via this route

The SPY Act: Ditching Damages as an Element of Liability for On-Line Conduct Between Private Parties?

The question of how to stymie the proliferation of spyware on computers has been a recurring topic of debate in Congress and in the technology industry. With the passage of the SPY ACT (H.R. 29) a high probability, this article highlights its prohibitions, with particular emphasis on how they change current legal regimes. Most federal computer statutes—insofar as they address actions victimizing private citizens—require damage to the computer. In addition, one of the elements of common law trespass to chattel is damage. Whether intended or not, the SPY ACT subtly introduces a strict liability component into federal computer and Internet law

Effects of Incompetency Determinations on Subsequent Criminal Processing: Implications for Due Process

This paper was prepared for presentation at the Conference on Mental Health and the Law, the School of Law, Catholic University, Washington, D.C., January 19, 1974