Increasing throughput and sensitivity of DNA Methylation analysis through functional nanoparticles

DNA Methylation analysis has been proven as an invaluable tool in cancer screening and diagnosis. Conventional techniques for DNA methylation analysis have limited sensitivity and specificity, making early detection a complicated endeavor. Furthermore, DNA methylation analysis requires a series of disconnected processes. Although a wide variety of commercial kits are available for the individual steps, so far there is no product that can combine all the steps together. Our novel approach address these problems by integrating all the steps required for DNA methylation together through the use of the silica superparamagnetic nanoparticles (SSNP) and quantum dots, thus minimizing the sample transfer and reducing the processing time.