The invention relates to a new method of characterising a target RNA polynucleotide by taking one or more measurements as the target RNA polynucleotide moves with respect to a transmembrane pore. The movement is controlled by a DNA helicase. The invention also relates to a modified RNA construct wherein the RNA polynucleotide has been modified to increase DNA helicase binding thereto.

Provided herein are methods and devices for characterizing a biomolecule parameter by a nanopore-containing membrane, and also methods for making devices that can be used in the methods and devices provided herein. The nanopore membrane is a multilayer stack of conducting layers and dielectric layers, wherein an embedded conducting layer or conducting layer gates provides well-controlled and measurable electric fields in and around the nanopore through which the biomolecule translocates. In an aspect, the conducting layer is graphene.

A method to determine the throughput speed v of a pore, comprising the steps of feeding, by means of a driving force F, a filiform calibration element through the pore, the calibration element having a plurality of markers spaced apart by known distances and configured to produce an interaction event that transmits a signal away from the pore upon interaction with the pore, detecting a plurality of interaction events, and determining a time interval Δt between successive interaction events, and/or a frequency ω of interaction events.

The present disclosure provides apparatuses and methods for analyzing the presence of a target analyte. The apparatuses and methods of the present disclosure can be operated in a multiplexed format to perform various assays of clinical significance.

A method of exporting measurements of a nanopore sensor on a nanopore based sequencing chip is disclosed. An electrical characteristic associated with the nanopore sensor is measured. The electrical characteristic associated with the nanopore sensor is processed. A summary for the electrical characteristic and one or more previous electrical characteristics is determined. The summary for the electrical characteristic and the one or more previous electrical characteristics are exported. Determining the summary includes determining that the electrical characteristic and at least a portion of the one or more previous electrical characteristics correspond to a base call event at the nanopore sensor. The summary represents the electrical characteristic and the at least a portion of the one or more previous electrical characteristics.

A nucleic acid storage system (100) that uses nanopore sequencing to read data values chemically embedded in oligonucleotides includes a membrane (102), a voltage source (108), and a nucleic acid strand (110). The membrane (102) has a plurality of nanopores (104) that are stacked upon one another in a multi-nanopore arrangement. The voltage source (108) is configured to direct voltage across the plurality of nanopores (104). The nucleic acid strand (110) including the oligonucleotides is threaded through each of the plurality of nanopores (104) within the membrane (102). A separate base signal (118) is generated from the nucleic acid strand (110) being threaded through each of the plurality of nanopores (104), and Recursive Neural Networks can be used to estimate a signal shape for each oligonucleotide. Recurrent Convolutional Neural Networks and noise predictive data detection algorithms can be used based on the estimated signal shapes to sequence the oligonucleotides.

Methods are provided for manufacturing well-controlled, solid-state nanopores and arrays thereof. In one aspect, methods for manufacturing nanopores and arrays thereof exploit a physical seam. One or more etch pits are formed in a topside of a substrate and one or more trenches, which align with the one or more etch pits, are formed in a backside of the substrate. An opening is formed between the one or more etch pits and the one or more trenches. A dielectric material is then formed over the substrate to fill the opening. Contacts are then disposed on the topside and the backside of the substrate and a voltage is applied from the topside to the backside, or vice versa, through the dielectric material to form a nanopore. In another aspect, the nanopore is formed at or near the center of the opening at a seam, which is formed in the dielectric material.

The techniques relate to methods and apparatus for conductance measurement. A device includes a fluid chamber, at least one sensor element configured to sense an analyte, wherein the at least one sensor element is in fluid communication with the fluid chamber, and a set of one or more electrodes in fluid communication with the fluid chamber for sensing a conductance of a fluid in the fluid chamber.

Disclosed is a transient-state THz spectrometer applied to cells and biological macromolecules, including a femtosecond laser amplifier. A femtosecond laser output by the femtosecond laser amplifier is divided into two beams of pump light and probe light after passing through a beam splitter of which a transmission-reflection ratio is 7:3, the pump light is focused to irradiate a gap between electrodes of a nonlinear photoconductive antenna and emit a terahertz wave after successively passing through a half wave plate, a silver-plated reflector and a first lens, the terahertz wave forms a terahertz wave collineation after successively passing through a second lens, a slab waveguide, a third lens and an ITO film, the terahertz wave collineation and the probe light form a probe light collineation of wavefront tilt which is perpendicularly incident on a ZnTe crystal and detected and recorded by using a CCD camera.

Provided herein are mutant single-chain Mycobacterium smegmatis porin (Msp) and uses thereof.