A J Nijdam, M Ming-Cheng Cheng, D H Geho, R Fedele, P Herrmann, K Killian, V Espina, E F Petricoin, L A Liotta, and M Ferrari (2007)
Physicochemically modified silicon as a substrate for protein microarrays
Biomaterials 28(3):550-8.
Reverse phase protein microarrays (RPMA) enable high throughput screening of posttranslational modifications of important signaling proteins within diseased cells. One limitation of protein-based molecular profiling is the lack of a PCR-like intrinsic amplification system for proteins. Enhancement of protein microarray sensitivities is an important goal, especially because many molecular targets within patient tissues are of low abundance. The ideal array substrate will have a high protein-binding affinity and low intrinsic signal. To date, nitrocellulose-coated glass has provided an effective substrate for protein binding in the microarray format when using chromogenic detection systems. As fluorescent systems, such as quantum dots, are explored as potential reporter agents, the intrinsic fluorescent properties of nitrocellulose-coated glass slides limit the ability to i