# Automated Electrophoresis Platform to Streamline Validations of Biomedical Samples

> **NIH NIH R35** · WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY · 2024 · $359,577

## Abstract

ABSTRACT
Development of a universal micro total analysis system (TAS) represents the pinnacle of measurement
science. Integrating all aspects of sample preparation, analysis, and detection into an inexpensive,
automated platform would streamline analyses and enable rapid validation of biomedical samples. The
ideal TAS would not only validate the chemical composition of a biological sample, but also characterize
higher order biomolecule structure (e.g. disulfide bonds, chirality, sulfation) to evaluate bioactivity. To date,
though, these dreams have not been realized. Consequently, researchers must manually prepare samples
for analyses that characterize sample purity, but assessments of biological activity often remain neglected.
This time-consuming, incomplete sample validation risks biasing results of subsequent research studies.
To help improve the rigor and reproducibility of NIH-sponsored projects, we propose to develop a
universal TAS to provide researchers with a tool to rapidly validate biomedical samples, including
evaluations of higher order biological structures that dictate activity. Thermal gel electrophoresis (TGE)
will serve as the heart of the TAS. Our group developed TGE to enrich, separate, and detect
biomolecules within a temperature-responsive gel, thus integrating multiple steps of an analytical method
into an inexpensive microfluidic device. Building on our prior work, we propose to further expand our
capabilities towards the ideal comprehensive TAS. Additional characterizations will be developed to
screen the higher order structure of proteins, peptides, RNAs, and sugars with high selectivity and
sensitivity that are inaccessible to other techniques (e.g. LC-MS). To streamline analyses, sample
preparation capabilities will be integrated into devices to filter cells, desalt samples, and label analytes
for detection. This approach will enable direct analysis of biological samples on-chip, obviating the need
for external sample pretreatment by the user. Additionally, label-free detection schemes will be developed
to further expedite analyses and simplify operational constraints. Collectively, the innovative analytical
strategies developed here will provide a convenient, inexpensive means of characterizing biomedical
samples that cannot be achieved by other techniques. Ultimately, we envision our TGE-based TAS
platform will make robust sample validation accessible to researchers, which will increase reproducibility
of biological studies in academic, government, and industry laboratories.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10931358
- **Project number:** 5R35GM150518-02
- **Recipient organization:** WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Thomas Linz
- **Activity code:** R35 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $359,577
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2023-09-21 → 2028-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10931358

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10931358, Automated Electrophoresis Platform to Streamline Validations of Biomedical Samples (5R35GM150518-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10931358. Licensed CC0.

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