NJIT Physics Department Seminar

March 8th, 2010, Monday

Cell Communications at the Nanoscale

Prof. Reginald C. Farrow

NJIT

(Biophysics)

Time: Noon-1 pm with 11:30 am tea time

Room: 407 Tiernan

Abstract:

Biological cells act on and react to their environment by way of a complex series of electrochemical signals. These signals determine every function of the cell from taking in food to cell division to the actual death of the cell. Biologists have carefully studied this complex chain of signals mainly using florescent markers in combination with optical microscopy. The spatial resolution has therefore been limited while many important effects cannot be measured. A multidisciplinary research program is underway at NJIT to study cell signaling with sub-optical spatial resolution using an array of interconnected carbon nanotubes that can measure electrochemical signals inside of living and motile cells. A significant breakthrough in nanoprobe electrical measurements from live neuronal cells will be presented along with the controlled deposition and functionalization of carbon nanotubes. The potential for the next frontier in the biophysics of cell signaling will be described.