Non-invasive cancer detection using molecular device based on aromatic molecules

• Main Authors: Rupan Preet Kaur, Ravinder Singh Sawhney, Derick Engles, Milanpreet Kaur
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2016-12-01
• Series: ICT Express
• Subjects: Lead (Pb); Cancer; Molecular junction; Extended Huckel theory (EHT); Non-equilibrium Green’s function (NEGF)
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405959516301138

Major advances in the molecular diagnostics of screening tissue and blood samples have fueled the search for biomarkers and diagnostic nanosensors that can detect abnormalities early in their development cycles. In this paper, we propose an aromatic molecular junction-based biomarker that can trace the concentration of lead in any live sample. A nanomolecular device based on an anthracenedithiol molecule was modeled. Its electrical transport attributes were computed using a semi-empirical extended Huckel theory combined with non-equilibrium Green’s function formalism. We observed that the current and conductance assay had prominent changes when the molecular junction device was exposed to variant concentrations of lead. Based on our results, we propose aromatic molecular junction-based biomarkers that can detect even minor adulterations of lead when plied at operating voltage range.