定量生物学中心

学术报告

题目： Nucleic Acid Diagnostics Biotechnologies based on Hybridization

报告人： David Yu Zhang 教授

   Ted Law Jr. Assistant Professor of Bioengineering at Rice University

时间：2015-5-13（周三），13:00-14:00

地点：北京大学老化学楼东配楼101报告厅

主持人：定量生物学中心，朱怀球 教授

摘要:

Nucleic acids (DNA and RNA) are being increasingly appreciated as biomarkers with diagnostic value, based on rapid development of nucleic acid biotechnology over the past 20 years.  Nucleic acid diagnostics is now a $5B per year industry, with primary applications in cancer and infectious diseases.  There are 4 major metrics for nucleic acid diagnostics: specificity, sensitivity, multiplexing, and speed; current technologies possess strengths and weaknesses in different areas.  At its heart, all nucleic acid biotechnology depends on the reliable Watson-Crick hybridization, be it for PCR primer binding or microarray capture or NGS sequencing-by-synthesis; by improving hybridization properties, we can thus improve all of nucleic acid diagnostic biotechnology.  

Our research group specializes in using molecular competition to suppress unintended interactions between nucleic acids.  Today, I will talk about our recent progress in developing novel DNA probes and primers, and their use for scientific and technological applications.  For PCR-based analysis, we have developed fluorescent probes capable of detecting 0.1% variant allele frequency, selective primers that achieve 20 cycle ∆Cq in discriminating single nucleotide variants from human genomic DNA.  For NGS enrichment, we are developing capture probes with tunable yield allowing uniform capture yield of target sequences with GC content between 0% and 100%.  We are also interested in better understanding the basic biophysics of nucleic acids, and have developed new methods to accurately measure DNA motif thermodynamics and hybridization kinetics with unparalleled accuracy at a fraction of typical costs.  Leveraging these advances, we have started using these molecular tools for as biotechnology tools in collaboration with a number of companies.

David Yu Zhang is the Ted Law Jr. Assistant Professor of Bioengineering at Rice University.  He received his B.S. and Ph.D. from the California Institute of Technology, and did his postdoctoral training at Harvard Medical School.  His research has led to 20 peer-reviewed publications, 4 issued, and 10 pending patents.

详细介绍请参见http://bioengineering.rice.edu/David_Zhang.aspx