Micro/nano-technologies in Biology and Molecular Diagnostics

Course contents: The course is designed for students interested to become familiar with contemporary technologies and their application to surface-based bio-analytical sciences.  Briefly, the course will include in the first part, a description of the principle of operation of biosensors and their technical characteristics, the surface-immobilization of biomolecules and the physicochemical study of their interaction.  The second part will be focused on the applications of biosensors to biotechnology and, specifically, clinical and biochemical analysis, drug design and screening and environmental analysis through the detection of pathogens and toxins in liquid samples.  Finally, the course will cover briefly relevant technologies such as DNA and protein micro-arrays and “lab-on-a-chip” systems. A short introduction into practical considerations will be provided during a visit into Biosensors’ Laboratory.  For the successful attendance of the course, good knowledge of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry will be required; therefore, students interested in taking the course are strongly advised to have successfully completed the above two courses.