Kodecyte
Encyclopedia
A kodecyte is a living cell
Cell (biology)
The cell is the basic structural and functional unit of all known living organisms. It is the smallest unit of life that is classified as a living thing, and is often called the building block of life. The Alberts text discusses how the "cellular building blocks" move to shape developing embryos....

 that has been surface modified with KODE Technologyto gain a new or novel biological, chemical or technological function. The cell is modified by the anchoring of chemical constructs into the cell membrane
Cell membrane
The cell membrane or plasma membrane is a biological membrane that separates the interior of all cells from the outside environment. The cell membrane is selectively permeable to ions and organic molecules and controls the movement of substances in and out of cells. It basically protects the cell...

.

Features

All kodecytes retain their normal vitality
Vitality
-Vitality:Etymology: From Latin vita , which means life.Outside of its own existence or source, life is only recognized through some form of expression or dynamic...

 and functionality while gaining the new function of the inserted constructs.

The combination of dispersibility in biocompatible media, spontaneous incorporation into cell membranes, and apparent low toxicity, makes KODE FSL constructs a valuable research tool for the development of new diagnostic and therapeutic applications.

Applications

KODE technology has been used for the in vitro
In vitro
In vitro refers to studies in experimental biology that are conducted using components of an organism that have been isolated from their usual biological context in order to permit a more detailed or more convenient analysis than can be done with whole organisms. Colloquially, these experiments...

 modification of murine embryo
Embryo
An embryo is a multicellular diploid eukaryote in its earliest stage of development, from the time of first cell division until birth, hatching, or germination...

s, spermatozoa, zebra fish, epithelial/endometrial cells and red blood cell
Red blood cell
Red blood cells are the most common type of blood cell and the vertebrate organism's principal means of delivering oxygen to the body tissues via the blood flow through the circulatory system...

s to create cellular quality controls systems, rare antigen
Antigen
An antigen is a foreign molecule that, when introduced into the body, triggers the production of an antibody by the immune system. The immune system will then kill or neutralize the antigen that is recognized as a foreign and potentially harmful invader. These invaders can be molecules such as...

 expression, modified cell adhesion/interaction/separation/immobilisation, and labelling. It has also been intravascularly infused for in vivo
In vivo
In vivo is experimentation using a whole, living organism as opposed to a partial or dead organism, or an in vitro controlled environment. Animal testing and clinical trials are two forms of in vivo research...

 modification of blood cells and neutralisation of circulating antibody
Antibody
An antibody, also known as an immunoglobulin, is a large Y-shaped protein used by the immune system to identify and neutralize foreign objects such as bacteria and viruses. The antibody recognizes a unique part of the foreign target, termed an antigen...

. Additionally KODE FSL constructs have been shown to inhibit toxins and HIV viral infection
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...


Inkjet technology

Researchers are now using KODE™ technology to manufacture prototype diagnostic assay kits using standard desktop ink jet printers, by simply replacing the ink in a spent cartridge with a solution of KODE™ technology. The KODE™ technology can then be printed onto a substrate in much the same way that one might print a letter or drawing on a sheet of paper. Ink jet printing KODE™ technology provides a cost effective alternative to existing methods of manufacturing diagnostic test kits, including microarrays, which for the most part use robotics.

The technology

KODE FSL constructs consist of three components; a functional moiety
Functional group
In organic chemistry, functional groups are specific groups of atoms within molecules that are responsible for the characteristic chemical reactions of those molecules. The same functional group will undergo the same or similar chemical reaction regardless of the size of the molecule it is a part of...

 (F), a spacer (S) and a lipid
Lipid
Lipids constitute a broad group of naturally occurring molecules that include fats, waxes, sterols, fat-soluble vitamins , monoglycerides, diglycerides, triglycerides, phospholipids, and others...

 (L). The spacer is selected to provide a construct that is dispersible in water
Dispersion (chemistry)
A dispersion is a system in which particles are dispersed in a continuous phase of a different composition . See also emulsion. A dispersion is classified in a number of different ways, including how large the particles are in relation to the particles of the continuous phase, whether or not...

, yet will spontaneously and stably incorporate into a membrane.

Function moieties include saccharides (including ABO blood group-related determinants, sialic acid
Sialic acid
Sialic acid is a generic term for the N- or O-substituted derivatives of neuraminic acid, a monosaccharide with a nine-carbon backbone. It is also the name for the most common member of this group, N-acetylneuraminic acid...

s, hyaluronin polysaccharides), fluorophore
Fluorophore
A fluorophore, in analogy to a chromophore, is a component of a molecule which causes a molecule to be fluorescent. It is a functional group in a molecule which will absorb energy of a specific wavelength and re-emit energy at a different wavelength...

s, biotin
Biotin
Biotin, also known as Vitamin H or Coenzyme R, is a water-soluble B-complex vitamin discovered by Bateman in 1916. It is composed of a ureido ring fused with a tetrahydrothiophene ring. A valeric acid substituent is attached to one of the carbon atoms of the tetrahydrothiophene ring...

, and a range of peptides.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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