1989 — 1995 |
Smith, Lloyd [⬀] |
N/AActivity Code Description: No activity code was retrieved: click on the grant title for more information |
Presidential Young Investigator Award @ University of Wisconsin-Madison
This award provides funds for a PYI award to an outstanding young scientist interested in the development of new bioanalytic techniques. His planned activities include further development of automated DNA and protein sequencing. Dr. Smith's previous work was central to the development of the first generation of automated DNA sequencers. The development of new instruments and associated techniques intended specifically for the chemical and physical analysis of molecules of biological interest has played a key role in the remarkable success of modern genetics and biochemistry. Continued progress in these development efforts, with the aim of further automation and increased sensitivity should have a significant effect on our understanding of the control of gene expression, of the adaptation and evolution of living organisms, and of the biochemistry that is basic to the biotechnology industry.
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0.901 |
2001 — 2004 |
Corn, Robert Hoos, Holger Smith, Lloyd Condon, Anne |
N/AActivity Code Description: No activity code was retrieved: click on the grant title for more information |
Bio-Qubic: Multiple-Word Dna Computing On Surfaces @ University of Wisconsin-Madison
EIA-0130108 Lloyd M. Smith University of Wisconsin-Madison
Title: Multiple-Word CNA Computing on Surfaces
Under this project tools are being developed to increase the computational generality of surface-based DNA computing. It is well known that for a computing model to be general, that is, capable of efficiently simulating algorithms used in conventional electronic computing, it must be able to efficiently simulate circuits. It has been shown theoretically that the surface-based approach, when using multiple words and the MARK, DESTROY-UNMARKED, UNMARK, and APPEND operations, is a generalizable approach to computing, but this has not been implemented experimentally. The necessary tools for such an implementation is being developed. Particular tasks, which are being addressed to this end, include:
-improved designs of sets of DNA "words" that do not interfere with one another in hybridization experiments and do not contain strong secondary structure motifs.
-methods for the efficient purification of colloidal gold nanoparticles and the implementation of surface-based DNA computing using such particles as supports.
-development of a new DESTROY-UNMARKED operation, multiple-word AND operation, and multiple-word APPEND-MARKED operation.
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0.901 |
2002 — 2006 |
Smith, Lloyd (co-PI) [⬀] Hamers, Robert [⬀] Van Der Weide, Daniel (co-PI) [⬀] |
N/AActivity Code Description: No activity code was retrieved: click on the grant title for more information |
Nirt: Nanotubes and Nanowires as Biological Sensors and Actuators: Approaching the Single-Molecule Limit @ University of Wisconsin-Madison
This proposal was submitted in response to the solicitation "Nanoscale Science and Engineering" (NSF 01-157). The aim of this project is the development and use of biologically modified nanotubes and nanowires as electrical probes of biological activity. Researchers will develop a new type of nanoscale probe, the "nano-coax", that can serve as a molecular probe only nanometers in dimensions. This new probe involves attaching biomolecules specifically to the end of silicon nanowires and carbon nanotubes, providing a very highly localized sensing region. The electrical response of the nanoprobe will be measured over a wide frequency range from kilo-Hertz to Giga-Hertz. The researchers will also explore the use of the nanoprobe as a molecular-scale actuator, using an applied electrical control signal to induce a change in activity of biological molecules tethered to the end. The research involves an interdisciplinary team of chemists, molecular biologists, and electrical engineers. The outcome of the research will be the development of a new set of bioanalytical tools able to rapidly detect biological species with unprecedented selectivity and sensitivity approaching the single-molecule limit. Successful use of nanoprobes as biological actuators would permit the direct manipulation of biological processes at the nanometer scale. The research involves a large component of graduate and undergraduate education and training. Graduate students will work together with faculty and undergraduate students as part of an interdisciplinary team. Faculty researchers will train graduate students and undergraduate students in state-of-the-art methods of materials fabrication and biological analysis, providing a workforce well-trained for industrial and academic research.
This project is aimed at the development of a revolutionary kind of biological sensor. Recent advances have led to the development of tiny wires ("nanowires") only a few nanometers in diameter. In this research project, an interdisciplinary team of scientists will fabricate nanowires and then attach biological molecules, such as DNA and proteins, to them. The researchers will then investigate the electrical signals generated when these "nanoprobes" interact with other biological molecules. The research has the potential to lead to major advances in the development of highly sensitive detectors able to identify minute quantities (perhaps as little as a single molecule) of biological molecules. The researchers will also explore the use of nanometer-sized probes to induce changes in biological activity, with long-term potential for biomedical applications. This project is co-supported by the Division of Materials Research, the Chemistry Division, the Division of Bioengineering and Environmental Systems, and the Chemical and Transport Systems Division.
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0.901 |
2002 — 2006 |
Corn, Robert Hoos, Holger Smith, Lloyd Condon, Anne |
N/AActivity Code Description: No activity code was retrieved: click on the grant title for more information |
Itr: Multiple-Word Dna Computing On Surfaces @ University of Wisconsin-Madison
EIA - 0203892 Smith, Lloyd University of Wisconsin
TITLE: ITR: Multiple-Word DNA Computing on Surfaces
This effort will extend the scope and power of surface-based DNA computing in two major respects: i) by scale-up of the size of problem addressed experimentally, ii) by increasing computational generality by extending capabilities to the solution of circuit-SAT problems.
Goal (i) will be scaling up the computing process using a problem size of 24 bits as a target goal. 24 bits corresponds to a solution space size of 1.7 x 107 elements, a factor of ten million increase over the 4 bit problem addressed previously.
Goal (ii) - For a computing model to be general, that is, capable of efficiently simulating algorithms used in conventional electronic computing, it must be able to efficiently simulate circuits. The ability to simulate Boolean formulas is not sufficient. In theoretical work, it is shown that the surface-based approach, when using multiple words and the MARK, DESTROY-UNMARKED, UNMARK, and APPEND operations, is such a generalizable approach to computing, but it has not been implemented experimentally. This proposal seeks to implement this approach experimentally and to apply it to the solution of circuit-SAT problems.
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0.901 |
2005 — 2008 |
Skop, Ahna (co-PI) [⬀] Smith, Lloyd (co-PI) [⬀] Moss, Richard Stretton, Antony (co-PI) [⬀] Sussman, Michael [⬀] |
N/AActivity Code Description: No activity code was retrieved: click on the grant title for more information |
Acquisition of a Maldi-Toftof Mass Spectrometer For Wisconsin Researchers @ University of Wisconsin-Madison
At the University of Wisconsin-Madison and in other universities throughout the state, there are over a thousand faculty performing research within the life sciences. Fundamental to many of these studies is a mass spectrometric-assisted proteomic analysis of the cells, tissues and organs that make up the organisms. The UW -Madison Biotechnology Center Mass Spectrometry/Proteomic Facility was established in 1998 as a centralized facility for the purpose of acquiring mass spectrometers and making them available to the research community on a fee-for-service basis. During the six years since inception, it has proven successful in meeting the proteomic needs of nearly one hundred different academic laboratories in a cost effective, top quality manner. However, a major deficiency for investigators using this facility has been the inability to obtain protein sequence from very small samples of tissue, a common handicap of biological research. A second limitation is the ability to routinely perform quantitative differential proteomic experiments using isotope-assisted tandem mass spectrometry. The MALDI-based tandem mass spectrometer known commonly as a MALDI-TOFTOF is an instrument that is uniquely capable to address both of these problems. Surprisingly, there is not a single MALDI-TOFTOF available in the state. Wisconsin researchers currently must drive/fly to Chicago or Boston to obtain precious instrument time. Lack of ready access to this instrument locally has hindered our researchers in obtaining the critical information needed for converting genomic sequence 'data' into a real understanding of life processes. The purpose of this award is to acquire this instrument and make it available to academic researchers statewide. The instrument will be placed within the existing UWBC Core Mass Spectrometry/Proteomics Facility, ensuring that (i) it will be accessible to a large diverse group of researchers, (ii) that it will heavily used and (iii) that it will be well maintained for optimal sensitivity and overall reliability.
The broader impacts of this project are several-fold. First, the research users represent a large number of different academic disciplines, from Animal/Food Science to Engineering to Prebiotic Chemistry to the 'traditional' Molecular, Cellular and Organismal Biology areas. Six years of prior experience in operating expensive and sophisticated mass spectrometers ensures that the operation of this MALDI-TOFTOF will be well organized, accessible and affordable for the entire community. In addition, the university has strived to ensure that the UWBC core facilities in general, and the Mass Spectrometry/Proteomics in particular, are utilized for education at all levels, including undergraduates and high schools, both locally and in Wisconsin communities with underrepresented groups, such as economically impoverished schools in Milwaukee and Native American Indians in small communities of northern Wisconsin. This instrument will advance discovery and promote teaching and generally enhance the academic infrastructure, not only at UW-Madison, but also, all over the state.
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0.901 |
2008 — 2011 |
Smith, Lloyd [⬀] Blackwell, Helen (co-PI) [⬀] Shortreed, Michael |
N/AActivity Code Description: No activity code was retrieved: click on the grant title for more information |
Stable Metal:Amorphous Carbon Substrates For Combined Spr and Ms Analysis of Bioaffinity Interactions @ University of Wisconsin-Madison
The Analytical and Surface Chemistry Program in the Division of Chemistry, with co-funding from the Biomolecular Systems Cluster in the Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences, is supporting Profs. Lloyd Smith and collaborators Helen Blackwell and Michael Shortreed at the University of Wisconsin to study the nature and significance of interactions between molecules in biological systems. Specifically, they are examining the "language" that bacteria use for communication involving diffusible small molecules (or "autoinducers") perceived by cognate protein receptors. Bacteria use this chemical language to assess local population densities in a process known as "quorum sensing" which enables regulation of critical processes both harmful and beneficial to their plant host. Methods to control bacterial quorum sensing in plant-associated bacteria would have a major impact on agricultural science, because >50% of crop disease worldwide is caused by quorum sensing-regulated behaviors in bacteria. Further, molecules that inhibit bacterial quorum sensing represent an entirely new class of anti-infectives that could have immediate impact on human health. The work aims to develop new technologies for the elucidation of this complex communication network - a fundamental scientific advance. The focus is to create a more general platform for the multiplex analysis of bioaffinity interactions and to develop and apply this platform in the context of bacterial quorum sensing. The platform combines three powerful capabilities: (1) label-free measurements of bioaffinity interactions; (2) a novel substrate, which permits versatile and stable biomolecule attachment; and (3) mass spectrometric (MS) analysis capability to identify unknown ligands binding to the surface. This combination of three powerful and synergistic capabilities in a single system will provide a tool of unprecedented utility for the analysis of bioaffinity interactions.
The research groups involved are interdisciplinary, training researchers at many different stages of their education. Current collaborations involve over 20 different groups on campuses worldwide, plus two companies, and span the biological and physical sciences. In conjunction with the research, the PIs engage in interdisciplinary undergraduate research training; graduate student professional development through the Delta program (the UW implementation of the NSF Center for the Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning program); professional development for junior and senior high-school instructors through regular lectures by UW faculty; and a day-long hands-on science experience for high-school AP-chemistry students.
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0.901 |