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01/4/2007 -
Microfluidic Lab-on-a-Chip for Chemical and Biological Analysis and Discovery (2006)
by Paul C.H. Li
ISBN 1-57444-572-3. CRC Press, Boca Raton, Florida. 2006. Hardcover. 504 pages. $169.95.
| REVIEWED BY: | Gary S. Vardon, Salt Lake Tribune
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What a book! Microfluidic Lab-on-a-Chip for Chemical and Biological Analysis and Discovery, is truly an awesome book. The author, Paul Li, obtained his Ph.D. based on his studies of chemical sensors, and this background is reflected in the book. Sensors are a big deal in science, to put it crudely, and Li’s book gives great insights into sensors and related fields.
To give a biological analogy about the importance of sensors, consider what life would be like for a blind and deaf person who could not feel, smell, or taste. Seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling, and feeling involve biosensors of sorts. Advances in sensors will allow new experiments to be done and these experiments will advance science, leading to new sensors. This positive feedback loop got a big jump-start with Microfluidic Lab-on-a-Chip. Li advanced science in other ways. He wrote of the interesting science that goes into making fluidic chips. He discussed and reviewed the work done in microfluidic flow, separation, and detection. Some of the separation and detection techniques discussed may not be widely used or even known. These chip-based detection techniques include fluorescence of various sorts, absorbance, plasma emission detection, chemiluminescence, refractive index, thermal lens microscopy, Raman scattering, surface plasmon resonance, infrared, amperometeric, voltammetric, potentiometric, conductive, mass spectrometry, thermal, acoustic wave, and nuclear magnetic resonance. Chip-based separation techniques include gas chromatography, various forms of capillary electrophoresis, capillary electrochromatography, and two-dimensional chromatography. Seemingly, most instrumental analytical techniques that can be done off chip can be done on chip.
This book does not just cover chemical analytical techniques. As the title clearly states, chips can be used for biological work includign studies of cells in a flow, cell adhesion, cell manipulation, and cell culture. For genetic studies, DNA analysis mostly via the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was described in one chapter. Polymerase chain reaction is a difficult procedure to perform, and it is impressive that it can be done on a chip. The book describes the assay of enzymes, immunoassay, and protein separation. The main theme of the book is that microchips are versatile. In fact, adroit scientists can even create their own chips for unique applications. One application could easily be to see what can be done on chip. A theme that Li has developed is the multitude of tests that can be done on chip. Much can be done on a chip that would be difficult to do on a larger scale, such as magneto-hydrodynamic pumping and acoustic mixing.
This is a well-documented book with a multitude of references: 1,178 references are integrated throughout the book. A nice and needed touch is a comprehensive glossary. The book is well written and compares well to other science books of its kind. However, to fully understand the studies mentioned in the text, it is necessary to go to the original references. To aid in doing this, the book includes an appendix where various analytes are referenced. This gives an excellent overview of what has been determined on chip, by whom, and how. Microfluidic Lab-on-a-Chip requires a background in science of an advanced undergraduate in a field like material science, chemistry, or biochemistry. It is a great book to learn about instrument design, with numerous pictures and illustrations making the text much easier to understand. Good pictures are something that is lacking in all too many science books.
For more on Inorganic Materials Chemistry Desk Reference, Second Edition, visit the Taylor & Francis/CRC Press web site.
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