JP5822930B2 - Analysis apparatus and analysis system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an apparatus for measuring and analyzing a change in tunnel current when a biological substance such as DNA, RNA, protein, cell, or the like passes between nanoelectrodes.

  As a DNA sequencing technology that realizes low-cost and long base length decoding, a method of measuring a tunnel current for each base of DNA has been proposed (Non-patent Document 1). The change in tunneling current that flows when ssDNA passes through a nanopore (a nanometer-sized hole) with electrodes on both sides is measured for each base. The base species is identified by the current change specific to the base species. Since the size of the nanopore is about the same size as DNA, only one ssDNA passes through at a time. The movement of ssDNA in the nanopores uses the flow of ions generated by applying a voltage to two solution chambers separated by a substrate having nanopores. Therefore, tunnel current measurement is performed in an aqueous solution. Non-Patent Document 7 reports the effect of reducing the passing speed of DNA by lowering the applied voltage, but it has not been able to measure the current change for each base. The advantage of the above method is that it does not require an extension reaction by an enzyme as in the conventional DNA sequencer (Non-patent Document 2), so that the reagent cost can be reduced, the enzyme is deactivated, and the signal is crossed over. Because there is no decrease in the decoding rate due to, long base length decoding is possible.

  Patent Document 1 and Non-Patent Document 2 disclose a method for improving the accuracy of base identification by a tunnel current change by modifying the electrode surface with a molecule that recognizes a nucleic acid base. Base recognition molecules recognize nucleobases by forming hydrogen bonds with nucleobases. In addition to the nanopore structure, the tunneling current is measured by Scanning Tunneling Microscopy (STM). The electrodes for tunnel current measurement in STM are a probe and a conductive substrate. In Non-Patent Document 2, a probe whose surface is modified with 4-mercaptobenzamide (MBA) and the surface of a conductive substrate (gold-deposited mica substrate) are separated by about 2 nm, and both are filled with a phosphate buffer solution. When a nucleobase (dAMP, dCMP or dGMP) floating in the solution and MBA on the two electrodes form a hydrogen bond, a spike-like increase in tunnel current value is observed. Spike-like current changes are observed multiple times at microsecond intervals (current value oscillation) while a single nucleobase forms hydrogen bonds with both MBAs. The above three types of bases are identified by the difference in spike-like current values. No change in tunnel current was observed when dTMP was suspended in the solution. Therefore, the four bases have not been identified. In addition, the three current types dAMP, dCMP, and dGMP have large variations in current values, so the width is larger than the peak interval of the current frequency distribution, that is, there is a large overlap in the current frequency distribution. Therefore, it is not the situation that can distinguish 3 kinds of bases well.

  Non-patent document 3 points out the desorption of hydrogen bonds, and non-patent document 4 points out the molecular orientation fluctuation in the hydrogen bond state as the cause of the oscillation of the current value.

On the other hand, Non-Patent Document 5 reports a molecule that recognizes an adenine derivative (9-ethyladenine) by hydrogen bonding in an aqueous solution. The recognition molecule has a hydrophobic aromatic ring in addition to the hydrophilic functional group that forms two hydrogen bonds with the adenine derivative. By increasing the number of benzene rings that make up the aromatic ring, the binding constant with the adenine derivative increases, indicating that the stacking interaction between the purine ring and the aromatic ring in the adenine derivative is important for molecular recognition. Yes. As in Non-Patent Document 5, as an example of molecular recognition combining hydrogen bonding and stacking interaction in an aqueous solution, Non-Patent Document 6 reports that a pterin molecule is recognized using the DNA AP site. The pterin molecule not only forms hydrogen bonds with guanine residues within the AP site, but also has a stacking interaction with the purine or pyrimidine ring that constitutes DNA in the vertical direction. Non-Patent Document 6, by performing a stacking interaction with the upper and lower pterin molecules, report the non-patent document 5 in the reported binding constants (70M ^-1) higher than the binding constant (10 ⁴ M ^-1) Yes. There are no examples of identifying four bases by measuring changes in tunneling current due to molecular recognition using hydrogen bonding and stacking interactions.

WO2008 / 124706

Johan Lagerqvist, et al., NANO LETTERS (2006) Vol.6, No.4 779-782 Shuo Huang, et al., Nat.Nanotech. (2010) Vol.5, 868-873. Shuai Chang, et al., Nanotechnology (2010) Vol.20, 185102. Stuart Lindsay, et al., Nanotechnology (2010) Vol. 21, 262001. Vincent M. Rotello, et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc. (1993), 115, 797-798. Keitaro Yoshimoto, et al., Chem. Comm. (2003) 2960-2961. Utkur Mirsaidov, et al., Nanotechnology (2010) Vol. 21,395501.

  As a method for discriminating the four types of bases from the difference in tunneling current values, it is effective to use electrodes modified with base-recognizing molecules. However, as shown in Patent Document 1 and Non-Patent Document 2, in base recognition using only hydrogen bonds, the variation in the tunnel current value is large, so that the four base types have not been clearly identified. In addition, the oscillation of the tunnel current value causes misreading of the base sequence. Therefore, the base sequence decoding accuracy is low.

  The reason for this is thought to be that in aqueous solution, water molecules hydrate with recognition molecules, hydrogen bond formation between recognition molecules and bases is significantly hindered, and the binding state between recognition molecules and bases becomes unstable. Non-Patent Document 4 points out the variation in the orientation of each molecule in the hydrogen bonding state as a factor that causes the current to oscillate.

  In Patent Document 1, ssDNA and PNA are hybridized using a trimeric peptide nucleic acid (PNA) as a recognition molecule to increase the binding force. However, since ssDNA can only be hybridized to the PNA modified on one of the electrodes, it cannot hybridize to the PNA on the other electrode. Therefore, it is insufficient to stabilize the structure of the recognition molecule-base-recognition molecule, and is insufficient to suppress the orientation fluctuation of the ssDNA with respect to the electrode position. In addition, when such a recognition molecule is used, three bases in ssDNA are recognized simultaneously, and the total of the tunnel currents of the three bases is obtained. For this reason, it is disadvantageous for tunnel current measurement for each base for DNA sequencing.

  In the present invention, in order to increase the binding force between the nucleobase and the recognition molecule modified on the electrode, the structure of the recognition molecule includes a hydrophobic aromatic ring that causes a stacking interaction in addition to a functional group that forms a hydrogen bond. By providing it, the above-mentioned problems are solved.

  It has the effect of suppressing variations in tunneling current values and vibration, improving the ability to discriminate four types, and improving the accuracy of DNA sequence decoding.

  In addition to the above, it has the effect of controlling the nanopore passage speed of ssDNA.

The block diagram of the 1st Example of this invention. The flowchart of the method of acquiring base information from a tunnel current value change. The structure of a typical base recognition molecule. Examples of functional groups that form hydrogen bonds. An example of an aromatic ring functional group having a stacking interaction. (a) A simple structure of a pyrimidine ring of adenine and a naphthalene molecule. (b) View of the stable arrangement of energy from the top and side. The relationship diagram of the number of aromatic rings and the binding energy of stacking interactions. Configuration of solution holder The structure of the electrode substrate 100 when the structure of FIG. 1 is arrayed. Configuration in the nanopore 103 in the second embodiment. Configuration in the nanopore 103 in the second embodiment. Configuration in the nanopore 103 in the third embodiment. Configuration in the nanopore 103 in the third embodiment. The structure of the electrode substrate 100 in Example 4. FIG. Configuration of the electrode 110 and the electrode substrate 100 in the fifth embodiment.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 shows a basic configuration for acquiring a base sequence by measuring a tunnel current. The structure inside the nanopore, which is particularly important for explaining the effect of the present invention, is shown in an enlarged view. In addition to the configuration shown in FIG. 1, the entire apparatus includes a liquid feeding unit, a temperature control mechanism, and a solution holding unit 310. Those configurations will be described later as appropriate.

  The base sequence acquisition method will be described with reference to FIG. The upper and lower portions of the electrode substrate 100 are filled with a 1 mM phosphate buffer (pH 7.4) solution. Above is the z-axis plus direction. Among the solution tanks separated by the electrode substrate 100, the upper side is referred to as an upper solution tank 311a, and the lower side is referred to as a lower solution tank 311b. The solution in each tank is held by a solution holding unit 310. The configuration of the liquid feeding holding unit will be described later. An arbitrary voltage Vp is applied to the electrode 101 immersed in the two solution tanks via the control unit 102, and a flowing current value Ip passes through the control unit 102 to a personal computer (PC) 104 equipped with an analysis and output mechanism. Saved in. When Vp = 0.5V is applied (the lower tank is positive), negatively charged phosphate molecules pass through the nanopore and flow into the lower tank. That is, in the nanopore 103, a flow of negative ions is generated from the upper tank toward the lower tank. Similarly, positive ion flows from the lower tank to the upper tank. The flow can be known by the change of the current value Ip. The ssDNA introduced into the upper solution tank 311a by the liquid feeding part passes through the nanopore 103 and flows into the lower solution tank 311b by the flow of ions. In addition to the negative charge of ssDNA, when the ssDNA passes through the nanopore 103, the flow of ions is blocked, so the current value Ip decreases. It can be known that the ssDNA passes through the nanopore 103 by this decrease in the current value. Since the size of the nanopore 103 is 2-3 nm, it is unlikely that two ssDNAs will pass through the nanopore 103 at the same time. When two ssDNAs pass, it can be confirmed from the larger decrease in Ip. Data when two or more ssDNAs pass is discarded. A bias voltage of Vt = 0.5V is applied to the electrode 110. When the distance between the opposing electrodes 110 is about 2 nm, the tunnel current value It when the ssDNA does not pass is about 0.01 nA. When ssDNA exists between the electrodes and forms a hydrogen bond and a hydrophobic interaction (stacking) with the base recognition molecule 120 that modifies the electrode surface, the tunnel current value It rises stepwise. Since the degree of increase varies depending on the base type, the base sequence in ssDNA can be known. As the ssDNA passes through the nanopore, the resulting current value changes stepwise with time because the bases that hydrogen bond with the recognition molecule change sequentially. When the frequency distribution of current values is created, four separate peaks can be seen. However, if the time resolution of the tunnel current measurement is insufficient because the passage of ssDNA is too fast, the frequency distributions of the four tunnel current values overlap and the four separated peaks are not seen. In the above case, the passage of ssDNA can be reduced to an appropriate speed by lowering the temperature of the solution bath. This time, the temperature of the solution tank was set to 15 degrees. The time resolution of the tunnel current value is 10 microseconds (0.1 MHz). The tunnel current value It is recorded and analyzed by the PC 104.

The method of acquiring base information from the tunnel current value change in the flowchart of FIG. Ip (i) and It (i) are current values acquired i-th from the start of measurement. I ₁ and I ₂ are the minimum current values of Ip when one or two ssDNAs pass through the nanopore 103, respectively. That is, when I ₂ > Ip (i)> I ₁ is satisfied, it is determined that one ssDNA passes through the nanopore 103. I _th is the minimum value of the tunnel current obtained when ssDNA and electrode 110 interact. I _{th_A} , I _{th_G} , I _{th_C} , and I _{th_T} are the maximum values of tunnel currents acquired when the bases A, G, C, and T in ssDNA interact with the electrode 110, respectively. For example, when I _{th_G} > It (i)> I _{th_A} is satisfied, the m th base sequence is identified as A. _{I 1, I 2, I th_A} , I th_G, I th_C, I th_T, using DNA samples of I _th is previously known sequences, determined by using values measured in real samples same measurement conditions. The currents Ip and It are moving average values at three points to suppress the influence of shot noise. 1 shows a schematic diagram of the base sequence information and current value time waveform data obtained as described above.

  The configuration near the electrodes will be described with reference to the enlarged view of FIG. In the nanopore 103, an electrode 100 facing in the x-axis direction protrudes by about 0.5 nm. The thickness of the electrode 100 in the Z direction is 0.3 nm or less. The material is Au. The distance between the electrodes is about 2 nm. Such a structure is created by the method described in Patent Document 1. A base recognition molecule 120 is modified at the electrode tip. The molecular structure is such that the hydrophobic functional group of the aromatic ring (the aromatic ring functional group in the figure) and the hydrophilic functional group (the hydrophilic functional group in the figure) are connected via a carbon chain linker. The base recognition molecule is fixed to the electrode by a metal-thiol bond between the thiol group connected to the carbon chain and the metal (Au) constituting the electrode. Details of the structure of the base recognition molecule will be described later with reference to FIG. In FIG. 1, for the sake of simplicity, a single recognition molecule is immobilized on each electrode, but in reality, a plurality of recognition molecules are often immobilized. When the ssDNA passes through the nanopore 103, the base recognition molecule 120 has a stacking interaction with the purine ring or pyrimidine ring whose hydrophobic aromatic ring functional group is the base, and the hydrophilic functional group is bonded to the hydrogen bonding site of the base. Recognize bases by forming hydrogen bonds. Since the above recognition mode is stronger and more stable than the conventional recognition of only hydrogen bonds (Non-patent Document 2), the degree of freedom of orientation of the base in the bonded state can be reduced. As a result, it is possible to suppress variations in the tunnel current value and vibrations through the recognition molecule-base-recognition molecule.

  In FIG. 1, base recognition molecules are modified on both electrodes 100, but only one of them may be modified with a base recognition molecule having a hydrophilic functional group and an aromatic ring functional group.

  FIG. 3 shows the structure of a typical base recognition molecule. The chemical structure is roughly divided into two parts: a hydrophilic functional group that forms a hydrogen bond and a hydrophobic aromatic ring functional group that has a stacking interaction. A linker is an alkyl chain that connects two sites to the electrode surface. The length of the alkyl chain is preferably 3 atoms or more. The constituent element of the alkyl chain may be not only hydrocarbon but also nitrogen and oxygen. The thiol group at the end of the linker (-SH) reacts specifically with metals such as Au and Pt that make up the electrode to form a metal-thiol bond. Of course, the effects of the present invention can also be obtained using other electrode materials and other bonding methods.

  FIG. 4 (a) shows an example of a hydrophilic functional group that forms a hydrogen bond, and FIG. 4 (b) shows an example of an aromatic ring functional group that has a stacking interaction. Any combination of these can be a base recognition molecule that exhibits the effects of the present invention. The aromatic ring functional group having the stacking interaction may be a general DNA intercalator in addition to the illustrated structure. Preferably, it does not have a hydrophilic functional group that forms a hydrogen bond. When the aromatic ring functional group that should be responsible for the stacking interaction forms a hydrogen bond with the base, the hydrogen bond between the hydrophilic functional group that forms the hydrogen bond and the base is inhibited, resulting in a variation in current. To reduce. As a constituent element of the structure of (b), it is better that there is less nitrogen or oxygen. On the other hand, the constituent element of the structure (a) needs to contain nitrogen and oxygen.

  It was confirmed by molecular orbital calculation using the Hartree-Fock approximation method that the stacking interaction increased the binding force between the base recognition molecule and the base. Using the molecular orbit calculation software (Gaussian, USA), we calculated the basis function system as STO-3G, using the molecular orbital calculation software (Gaussian, USA) when the aromatic molecule and the adenine base interacted arbitrarily in space. . It was confirmed that the calculated arrangement is an arrangement with stacking interaction and is in a more stable energy state than existing alone. The results are shown in FIGS.

  FIG. 5 (a) shows the structure of a single unit of a pyrimidine ring of adenine and a naphthalene molecule. FIG. 5 (b) is a view of the stable arrangement of energy after calculation as seen from above and from the side. It can be seen that the aromatic rings of the two molecules overlap in parallel and stack in a stable arrangement. Furthermore, when calculating the energy, it was found that the stacking configuration is more stable at 2.8 eV than when each molecule is present alone. In other words, a binding energy of 2.8 eV is generated. Therefore, it can be seen that the presence of an aromatic ring functional group having a stacking interaction increases the binding energy between the base recognition molecule and the base. In addition to the above, the base when stacking is arranged so as to be parallel to the aromatic ring, so that the degree of spatial freedom is limited and variation in orientation of each molecule is suppressed. Regarding bases other than adenine (thymine, cytosine, guanine), the arrangement in which the base and the aromatic ring are parallel and stacking interaction was in a stable energy state.

  In general, the bond energy per hydrogen bond is 0.3 eV. The base recognition molecule shown in (Non-Patent Document 1) forms four hydrogen bonds with an adenine base. Therefore, in the case of only hydrogen bonds, the bond energy is 1.2 eV. On the other hand, in the case of the base recognition molecule in which naphthalene is added to the above base recognition molecule, if the stacking interaction is increased by one, the binding energy becomes 1.2 eV + 2.8 eV = 4.0 eV. It becomes a state. A binding energy greater than 4.0 eV can be obtained if the naphthalene rings modified on the electrodes on both ends sandwich two pyrimidines and the stacking interaction is two.

  FIG. 6 shows the relationship between the size of the aromatic ring and the binding energy of the stacking interaction. The binding energy was determined by the molecular orbital calculation described above. The larger the ring structure, the greater the binding energy. However, since naphthalene has a larger binding energy than anthracene, increasing the ring structure does not necessarily increase the binding energy. On the other hand, the increase in the ring structure causes steric hindrance with ssDNA. The number of rings (6- or 5-membered ring) constituting the aromatic ring is preferably 2 or more.

  FIG. 7 shows the configuration of the solution holding unit 310. The upper solution tank 311a and the lower solution tank 311b are separated by the electrode substrate 10. The solution in both tanks can only move back and forth through the nanopore 103. Both tanks are each provided with a liquid feeding section. The liquid feeding section is provided with an inlet 303 and an outlet 304 of both liquid tanks. A sample container, a cleaning container 302a, and a modifying reagent container 302b are connected to the inlet 303 of the upper solution tank 311a via a valve 305 and can be switched by the valve 305. A washing container 302a and a modifying reagent container 302b are connected to the lower solution tank 311b with the same configuration. A solution is introduced into the solution tank by a pump. The introduced solution is put into the waste liquid containers 302de and 302e from the outlet 304. A temperature control mechanism 301 is provided in the solution tank. A Peltier device was used for temperature control. Temperature control is used to control the passage speed of ssDNA through nanopore 103. By lowering the temperature, molecular vibrations can be suppressed, which has the effect of suppressing variations in tunneling current.

  An electrode modification method using the liquid feeding part will be described. The modification reagent container 302b contains a base recognition reagent dissolved in a solvent. In this example, the base recognition molecule shown in FIG. 3 was used. The solvent is methanol. The upper and lower solution tanks are filled with a solvent in advance. A base recognition reagent is introduced into the upper and lower solution tanks by the liquid feeding unit, and the solvent in the solution tank is replaced. While being allowed to stand at room temperature for about 20 hours, base recognition molecules bind to the electrode surface through metal-thiol bonds. Thereafter, a solvent is introduced into the upper and lower solution tanks, and floating base recognition molecules in the solution are washed away from the outlet to the waste container. The amount of solvent used for washing is approximately 10 times the volume of the solution tank. Next, the solution in the washing container is replaced with a phosphate buffer, and the solution tank is replaced with the phosphate buffer. The modification of the electrode surface with a base recognition reagent can be confirmed by a decrease in the pulsed noise of the tunnel current. The above confirmation method is performed at any time during sample measurement as a method for confirming electrode deterioration due to base sequence measurement. If the electrode deteriorates, it can be immediately re-modified by using a method similar to that described in Olson and Buhlmann, Anal. Chem. 2003, 75, 1089. Here, a case where the binding step of the recognition molecule to the electrode surface and the base sequence determination step are realized in the same system, but these steps may be realized in different systems. The effect of realizing these processes with the same system is to regenerate the electrode by recombining the recognition molecule between different measurements in order to avoid the influence of electrode performance degradation due to separation of the recognition molecule that occurs with the measurement time. It can be done.

  When measuring the base sequence, the single-stranded ssDNA is put in the sample container 302c, introduced into the upper solution tank 311a, and the voltage is applied to Vp and Vt to start the measurement. When the measurement is completed, the ssDNA floating in the upper and lower solution tanks is washed away with a phosphate buffer. Then, if the solution in the sample container is replaced with another ssDNA, a plurality of DNA samples can be measured continuously.

  FIG. 8 shows the configuration of the electrode substrate 100 when the configuration of FIG. 1 is arrayed. By simultaneously decoding the base sequence with a plurality of nanopores 103, the measurement time per DNA sample can be shortened.

  Furthermore, a plurality of DNA samples can be measured simultaneously by arraying the solution holders 310 of FIG. By using the arrayed substrate of FIG. 8 as the electrode substrate 100 in the solution holding unit 310, higher throughput can be achieved.

  FIGS. 9A and 9B show the configuration inside the nanopore 103 in the second embodiment. Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment. The feature of Example 2 is that the opposing electrode 110 is modified with different base recognition molecules 120a and 120b. In FIG. 9 (a), only the aromatic ring functional group having a stacking interaction at 120a (FIG. 4 (b)) is used, and the hydrophilic functional group having a hydrogen bond with 120b is used as an aromatic ring functional group having a stacking interaction. ing. In FIG. 9 (b), a plurality of aromatic ring functional groups (FIG. 4 (b)) having a stacking interaction with 120b are used, and only hydrophilic functional groups having hydrogen bonds with 120a are used. By modifying the hydrophilic functional group that forms hydrogen bonds on only one side of the electrode 110, the base orientation during base recognition can be limited to one direction (the same hydrophilic bond on both sides of the electrode). If there is a group, there are two directions of base). This has the effect of suppressing variations in the tunnel current value.

  The method for modifying the electrode is the method described in Example 1, in which the base recognition molecule 120b is modified, and a voltage is applied so that the base recognition molecule 120b is desorbed only on one side of the electrode to make it unmodified. Next, the base recognition molecule 120a is modified on the unmodified electrode 110 by the method described in Example 1. For simplicity, FIG. 9 shows a state where only one molecule is fixed, but actually a plurality of base recognition molecules form a self-assembled monolayer (SAM). Therefore, the probability that the base recognition molecule 120a is fixed to the base recognition molecule 120b fixing electrode by the modification operation of the base recognition molecule 120a is low. A method for desorbing a base recognition molecule by applying a voltage is described in Mary M. Walczak, et al., Langmuir 1991, 7 2687-2693.

  In addition, after modifying the base recognition molecule 120b in a state in which a voltage that brings about an unmodified state only on one electrode in advance is applied, the voltage condition applied to the electrode is switched to change the base recognition molecule 120a into an unmodified state. There is also a method of modification with different base recognition molecules 120a and 120b by modifying the electrode.

  In this example, the case where two different types of base recognition molecules are modified on the surface of two types of electrodes has been described as an example. However, by applying the same principle, three, four, or more than five different types can be obtained. It is also possible to modify the base recognition molecule on the same number of electrode surfaces as the recognition molecular species. Thereby, a different base for every electrode is detectable.

  10A and 10B show the configuration inside the nanopore 103 in the third embodiment. Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment. The feature of Example 3 is that the electrode 110 is modified with two kinds of base recognition molecules 120c having an aromatic ring functional group having a stacking interaction and a hydrophilic functional group having a hydrogen bond. In FIG. 10 (a), both electrodes were modified with two types of base recognition molecules. As a modification method of the electrode 110, the method described in Example 1 is used. However, the two types of base recognition molecules are mixed in the modifying reagent container 302b. By adjusting the mixing ratio in advance, an appropriate recognition molecule ratio can be realized on the electrode.

  Since the structure of the base recognition molecule can be made small in this embodiment, there is an effect of reducing the synthesis work of each base recognition molecule.

  Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 10 (b), by modifying both electrodes with different base recognition molecules, the effect of controlling the orientation of the base when base recognition is performed on the electrode is added as in Example 2. The The modification method is described in Example 2.

  FIG. 11 shows the configuration of the electrode substrate 100 in the fourth embodiment. In this embodiment, a nano channel 601 is used instead of the nanopore 103. The nanochannel 601 corresponds to the solution holding unit 310 in FIG. Inflow ports 303 and discharge ports 304 are provided at both ends of the nanochannel, but are omitted from the figure. The ssDNA moves in one direction in the nanochannel by an electroosmotic flow generated by a voltage applied to both ends of the nanochannel 601. When ssDNA moves between electrodes protruding into the nanochannel, the base sequence of ssDNA is identified. The configuration of the electrode is described below.

  The electrode 110 protrudes about 0.5 nm in the nanochannel (x direction). The distance between the electrodes is about 2 nm. Therefore, the channel width in the x-direction and z-direction near the electrode protrudes is 2-3 nm. The width of the protruding portion of the electrode 110 is about 0.3 nm in the y direction and 2-3 nm in the z direction. The channel width other than the vicinity of the electrodes is about 50-100 nm in the xz direction. The method of creating the flow path and the electrode structure is a combination of the method described in Patent Document 1 and a general semiconductor process. Other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment.

  In this embodiment, since one solution holding tank can be provided, there is an effect of simplifying the apparatus configuration.

  FIG. 12 shows the configuration of the electrode 110 and the electrode substrate 100 of the fifth embodiment. Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment. However, this embodiment is characterized in that an STM mechanism 700 is provided. STM stands for Scanning Tunneling Microscopy. As the STM mechanism, a commercially available STM apparatus such as Agilent 5100 can be used. A voltage source that applies the voltage Vt and an ammeter that measures the current It are connected to the STM mechanism unit 700 via the control unit 102. One side of the electrode 110 is an STM probe, and the other side is an electrode substrate. As the electrode substrate, an Au (111) single crystal substrate having an atomic level flatness is used. However, a mica substrate on which Au is vapor-deposited may be used as long as it has an equivalent flatness.

  A solution holding part 310 is provided on the electrode substrate surface 110 (not shown), and ssDNA is floating. A method for measuring a tunnel current is described in Non-Patent Document 1.

  In FIG. 12, the base recognition molecule 120 of the same type is modified, but different base recognition molecules may be modified as in Examples 2 and 3.

  In this embodiment, the base recognition molecule can be modified by separating the electrode 110, so that the modification of different types of base recognition molecules is simplified. For example, it is not necessary to desorb molecules by applying a voltage as described in Example 2.

  While the above description has been made with reference to exemplary embodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

  In the above examples, the counter electrode provided in the nanopore, the counter electrode provided in the nanochannel, the probe electrode in the STM and the electrode substrate are modified with base recognition molecules in three main configurations. However, the present invention is not necessarily limited to these three types of configurations, and the tunnel current can be detected via a recognition molecule using a base or a base in a DNA or RNA chain as a measurement target. Applicable to all configurations to be measured. Furthermore, the measurement target may be a protein or a sugar chain.

  In the above embodiment, the measurement is limited to the tunnel current measurement, but the same effect can be obtained for the current measurement other than the tunnel current with the same configuration.

  Base recognition molecule 120, electrode 110, electrode substrate 100, STM mechanism unit 700, control unit 102, nanochannel 601, nanopore 103, solution holding unit 310, cleaning container 302a, modifying reagent container 302b, sample container 302c, waste liquid container 302de 302e, upper solution tank 311a, lower solution tank 311b, inlet 303, valve 305, inlet 303, outlet 304, PC104

Claims (10)

A first solution tank;
A second solution tank;
A substrate covered with an insulating material separating the first solution tank and the second solution tank;
The substrate has a through hole for connecting the first and second solution vessels,
In the hole, two conductive electrodes facing each other are provided,
The electrode surface is modified with a recognition molecule that captures a biomolecule,
The recognition molecule has a hydrophobic functional group that interacts with stacking and a hydrophilic functional group that forms a hydrogen bond with a biomolecule,
A control unit for measuring a current flowing by applying a voltage between the two electrodes,
An analysis system, wherein a biomolecule component is identified by a change in current value when the biomolecule passes between the two electrodes. The analysis system of claim 1,
A controller for applying a voltage between the first and second solution tanks to measure the current;
The said control part measures the electric current value by an ionic substance flowing between said two solution tanks through the said hole, The analysis system characterized by the above-mentioned. The analysis system of claim 2,
Of the two electrodes, only one recognition molecule having only a hydrophobic functional group is immobilized on one electrode surface. The analysis system of claim 2,
An analysis system, wherein a first recognition molecule having only a hydrophobic functional group and a second recognition molecule having only a hydrophilic functional group are immobilized on the electrode surface. A substrate made of an insulating material having a channel having a nanometer-sized gap at least partially formed on a surface thereof;
A controller for measuring a flowing current by applying a voltage between the flow paths separated by a gap;
In the gap, two conductive electrodes are arranged opposite to each other,
The electrode surface is modified with a recognition molecule that captures a biomolecule,
The recognition molecule has a hydrophobic functional group and a hydrophilic functional group,
An analysis system, wherein a biomolecule component is identified by a change in current value when the biomolecule passes between the two electrodes. Two opposing electrodes;
A solution containing a biomolecule filling between the two electrodes;
A controller for applying a voltage between the two electrodes and measuring a flowing current;
One of the electrodes is a conductive probe having a pointed tip shape,
Another of the electrodes is a conductive substrate,
The two electrode surfaces are modified with recognition molecules that capture biomolecules,
The recognition molecule has a hydrophobic functional group and a hydrophilic functional group,
An analysis system, wherein a biomolecule component is identified by a change in current value when the biomolecule passes between the two electrodes.   The analysis system according to claim 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6, wherein the hydrophobic functional group is composed of one or more aromatic rings. 8. The analysis system according to claim 7, wherein the electrode is gold .   9. The analysis system according to claim 8, wherein the biomolecule is single-stranded DNA, and the components to be identified are four types of bases.   10. The analysis system according to claim 9, wherein the hydrophobic functional group is naphthalene.

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