Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Chemistry / Christopher T. Culbertson / In research and industry, almost all chemical analysis methods involve the separation and detection of compounds. Typically, these separations are performed using traditional methods that require volumes in the 10 μL to 10 mL range of sample and in the 200 mL to 2 L range for solvents. These methods are not suitable for low-concentration, volume-limited samples frequently associated with biochemical studies. One way to overcome these limitations is to move the separation and detection to the microscale. The use of the microscale separation technologies enables the study of biological systems that have, until now, been out of reach due to their small volumes or low concentrations. The research presented in this dissertation will discuss two examples of this shift to microscale separation technologies which can solve some small volume sample challenges. These include the detection of protease activity in blood samples for use in cancer detection and the identification of immune system cascade proteins in the mosquito Anopheles gambiae. In Chapter 2 a microfluidic method and device is proposed to monitor protease activities for cancer detection. In this method nanobiosensors are used to measure enzyme activity in biological fluids. These nanobiosensors consist of iron-iron oxide magnetic nanoparticles that are attached to peptide substrates specific for proteases through a disulfide bond. The nanobiosensors are controlled using a neodymium magnet which is attached through a 3D printed adaptor to a rotating motor for mixing and a linear stage to move the nanoparticles between different sections of the device. The separation and detection sections of the device are explained in Chapter 3. Chapter 3 describes the fabrication and optimization of a simple device for microfluidic isoelectric focusing(IEF). IEF is a separation method in which analytes are separated based upon their isoelectric, i.e. neutral charge, points. A reducing agent can be added to the IEF buffer to detach the nanoparticle from the peptide substrate, releasing it for focusing. IEF is also a concentration as well as separation method that will allow the peptide substrates to be focused up to 10⁶ fold. It has a high peak capacity and produces reliable, reproducible separation patterns based on the isoelectric point of the peptide. To meet the detection limits required for cancer detection with proteases, scanning laser induced fluorescence is selected as the method of detection. This scanning system can monitor the separation over time to observe the parameters affecting the separation which cannot be done with typical point or imaging detection systems and allows better separation. This custom automatic detection system can distinguish focused samples of 500 fM from the background with minimal noise from the scanning system. In Chapter 4 the identification of serine protease and inhibitor binding complexes in A. gambiae hemolymph using magnetic bead immunoaffinity chromatography was attempted. These proteases play a key role in the insect innate immunity system and form irreversible complexes. These complexes can be purified from a complex hemolymph sample using an antibody to one of the complex members. To separate the complexes from the hemolymph, Serpin 2 antibodies were attached to protein A coated magnetic beads and then incubated with the hemolymph. Once the purified complexes and Serpin 2 were eluted, the purified proteases were identified on Orbitrap MS. In an attempt to simplify the isolation of the complexes, a magnetic bead mixing rotor column was developed to help reduce the volume of the elution to increase the concentration. This method, however, was not robust and did not improve the concentration.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Chemistry / Christopher T. Culbertson / Analytical separations form the bulk of experiments in both research and industry. The choice of separation technique is governed by the characteristics of the analyte and purpose of separation. Miniaturization of chromatographic techniques enables the separation and purification of small volume samples that are often in limited supply. Capillary electrophoresis and immunoaffinity chromatography are examples of techniques that can be easily miniaturized with minimum loss in separation efficiency. These techniques were used in the experiments presented in this dissertation. Chapter 1 discusses the underlying principles of capillary electrophoresis and immunoaffinity chromatography. In the second chapter, the results from immunoaffinity chromatography experiments that utilized antibody-coated magnetic beads to purify serine proteases and serine protease inhibitors (serpins) from A. gambiae hemolymph are presented and discussed. Serine proteases and serpins play a key role in the insect innate immunity system. Serpins regulate the activity of serine proteases by forming irreversible complexes with the proteases. To identify the proteases that couple to these serpins, protein A magnetic beads were coated with SRPN2 antibody and then incubated with A. gambiae hemolymph. The antibody isolated both the free SRPN2 and the SRPN2-protease complex. The purified proteases were identified by ESI-MS from as few as 25 insects. In Chapter 3, an integrated glass/PDMS hybrid microfluidic device was utilized for the transportation and lysis of cells at a high throughput. Jurkat cells were labeled with 6-CFDA (an internal standard) and DAF-FM (a NO specific fluorophore). Laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) detection was utilized to detect nitric oxide (NO) from single Jurkat cells. The resulting electropherograms were used to study the variation in NO production following stimulation with lipopolysaccharide (LPS). 3 h LPS-stimulation resulted in a two fold increase in NO production in both bulk and single cell analysis. A comparison of bulk and single cell NO measurements were performed and the average NO production in single cells compared well to the increase measured at the bulk cell level. Chapter 4 discusses the preliminary experiments with a T-shaped microfluidic device that exploit the property of poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) as an electroactive polymer (EAP), to enhance fluid mixing. EAPs deform when placed in an electric field. A thin layer of PDMS was sandwiched between chrome electrodes, positioned on the horizontal arms of the T design, and the electrolyte-filled fluidic channel. A potential difference across the PDMS layer caused it to shrink and stretch, thereby increasing the channel volume. The electrodes were actuated at 180[degrees] out of phase and this caused the fluid stream in the vertical channel to fold and stretch resulting in enhanced contact surface area and shorter diffusion distances of the fluid, thereby improving mixing efficiency. All the experiments presented in this dissertation demonstrate the application of miniaturized chromatographic techniques for the efficient analysis of small volume biological samples.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Chemistry / Christopher T. Culbertson / As the field of separation science evolves so do the techniques, tools and capabilities of the discipline. The introduction of microfluidics stemmed from a desire to perform traditional analyses faster and on a much smaller scale. The small device sizes exploited in microfluidics permits the investigation of very small volumes of very dilute samples yielding information inaccessible by traditional macroscale techniques. All of the chapters presented in this dissertation illustrate attempts to supplement current microscale techniques with new tools, techniques and analysis schemes for looking at biologically relevant analyses. In chapter two I present the development and characterization of an amphiphilic polymer that has potential as a material for the fabrication of microfluidic devices. This material is composed of a poly(dimethylsiloxane)-poly(ethylene oxide) block copolymer and is dramatically more hydrophilic than the other polymeric materials currently used for the fabrication of microfluidic templates, mainly poly(dimethylsiloxane). Biomolecules such as proteins are notoriously hydrophobic and will tend to adsorb to other hydrophobic surfaces thus the use of a hydrophilic material may serve to reduce or eliminate this problem. The amphiphilic material is of a suitable durability for micromolding and molded channel architectures can be sealed between two layers of the material by simple conformal contact permitting the execution of high speed electrophoretic separations. Chapter three contains initial results obtained while investigating the fluorescent labeling and electrophoretic separation of ecdysteroids. Ecdysteroids are hormones found in insects that are responsible for controlling the process of molting. Here we attempted to analyze these molecules by employing a reactive fluorescent probe, BODIPY FL® hydrazide, that would target the α,β-unsaturated ketone group on the steroid, permitting its analysis by capillary electrophoresis with laser induced fluorescence detection. While optimistic initial results were obtained with the labeling and analysis of similar functional groups on model compounds such as progesterone, labeling of the ecdysteroid molecules was never achieved to a degree that would permit reliable analysis. In chapter four I report the development and use of a microimmunoaffinity column for the analysis of insect serine protease inhibitors, or serpins. These proteins play a very important role in the regulation of insect immune responses and their activity may play an integral role in the effective transmission of the malaria parasite by the mosquito Anopheles gambiae. A microimmunoaffinity column was constructed from magnets, poly(dimethylsiloxane), fused silica capillary and Protein A coated magnetic microspheres. In these initial studies, purified antibodies to serpin protein, as well as purified serpin protein, were used to prepare and investigate the ability to isolate, preconcentrate, and elute serpin proteins for subsequent analysis. By implementing this miniaturized system which incorporates very small fluid volumes we hoped to extend this technique to the analysis of very small samples, and eventually to the analysis of individual small insects. Our work indicates that it is possible to isolate, elute, and detect serpin protein on a traditional western blot membrane. Chapter five presents the development of a novel polymer blend for the fabrication of paper-based microfluidic devices and use of these devices in the performance of diagnostically relevant clinical assays. We took the concept of paper-based microfluidic devices and improved upon the current photoactive polymers used for their fabrication by developing a polymer blend using an acryloxy modified siloxane polymer as well as a commercially available photoactive adhesive, Norland Optical Adhesive 74. This blended polymer resulted in a dramatic reduction in fabrication time as well as improved resolution permitting the reliable patterning of small feature sizes. We also report for the first time a demonstration of these devices performing a two-step spatially separated online chemical derivatization facilitating the analysis of urinary ketones. These devices are predominantly used for the analysis of urine, and their application was extended to the quantitation of nitrite in saliva for the purposes of hemodialysis monitoring. While varied in application, all of the data presented in this dissertation exploits the power of miniaturization to improve current methods of analysis and to extend macroscale techniques to trace biological analytes.

Submitted by Jorge Silva (jorgelmsilva@ufrrj.br) on 2017-04-18T19:29:49Z No. of bitstreams: 1 2012 - Felipe Machado Trombete.pdf: 1177577 bytes, checksum: 5ad9ebc406a8cd78d15ebfdc7acb27ff (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-04-18T19:29:49Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 2012 - Felipe Machado Trombete.pdf: 1177577 bytes, checksum: 5ad9ebc406a8cd78d15ebfdc7acb27ff (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-02-29 / CAPES / The grated parmesan cheese is a food commonly consumed in Brazil and, in the last decade, few studies evaluated their quality. The aim of this research was to evaluate the adequacy and the levels of aflatoxin M1 in the grated parmesan cheese marketed in the Metropolitan Region of Rio de Janeiro in relation to the recommendations of current legislation. For this, were analyzed 30 samples representing 10 major brands sold in the region. In the evaluation of quality, were analyzed the levels of moisture, water activity, pH, acidity, sorbic acid and indicator microorganisms of hygienic quality and sanitary. The research of AFM1 was carried out by high performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection (HPLC-DFL) preceded by purification by immunoaffinity chromatography. Only 14 of the 30 samples analyzed (46.7%) were in accordance with the legislation that regulates the product quality. Beyond the lack of uniformity in production, the major irregularities were due to excessive moisture content and also by the abusive addition of the preservative sorbic acid. These results suggest the occurrence of faults on Good Manufacturing Practices by the industries responsible for the brands tested, which represents beyond economic fraud, risks to consumers health, even if indirectly. With relation to research of AFM1, all samples showed satisfactory values with the national legislation. However, the existing limit for aflatoxin in this product is excessively high when compared with those established by others countries. If compared with the regulation prevailing in the European Union, 8 samples (26.7%) could be considered contaminated. / O queijo parmes?o ralado ? um alimento popularmente consumido no Brasil e, na ?ltima d?cada poucos trabalhos objetivaram estudar sua qualidade. Esta pesquisa objetivou avaliar a adequa??o do queijo parmes?o ralado comercializado na Regi?o Metropolitana do Rio de Janeiro em rela??o ao preconizado pela legisla??o atual e tamb?m pesquisar os ?ndices de aflatoxina M1 (AFM1) no produto. Para tal, foram analisadas 30 amostras representativas das 10 principais marcas comercializadas na regi?o. Na pesquisa da qualidade, foram analisados os teores de umidade, atividade de ?gua, pH, acidez titul?vel, conservante ?cido s?rbico e microrganismos indicadores da qualidade higi?nica e sanit?ria. J? a pesquisa de AFM1 foi realizada por cromatografia l?quida de alta efici?ncia com detec??o por fluoresc?ncia (CLAE-DF), precedida de purifica??o por Cromatografia de Imunoafinidade. Apenas 14 amostras das 30 analisadas (46,7%) estavam em acordo com a legisla??o que regulamenta a qualidade do produto. Al?m da falta de uniformidade na produ??o, as principais irregularidades constatadas foram referentes ao excessivo teor de umidade e tamb?m pela adi??o abusiva do conservante ?cido s?rbico. Tais resultados sugerem a ocorr?ncia de falhas nas Boas Pr?ticas de Fabrica??o pelas ind?strias respons?veis pelas marcas analisadas, o que representa al?m de fraude econ?mica, riscos ? sa?de do consumidor, mesmo que de forma indireta. Com rela??o a pesquisa de AFM1, todas as amostras se adequaram a legisla??o nacional. No entanto, o limite existente para a presen?a da toxina neste produto ? excessivamente alto quando comparado com os estabelecidos por outros pa?ses. Se comparado com a regulamenta??o predominante na Uni?o Europ?ia, 8 amostras (26,7%) poderiam ser consideradas contaminadas.