A disposable breath sensing tube with on-tube single-nanowire sensor array for on-site detection of exhaled breath biomarkers.

This paper presents a novel disposable breath-sensing tube with an on-tube single-nanowire (NW) sensor array for noninvasive, simple, and on-site detection of exhaled breath biomarkers. Although various noninvasive detection methods for lung cancer biomarkers in breath samples exist, they are unsuitable for self-diagnostics and immediate detection because they entail complicated handling procedures and are time intensive. In this study, we simulated, fabricated, and characterized disposable nanosensors by using single TiO2 and Ag NWs in flexible plastic tubes. The proposed sensors simultaneously detect 2-propyl-1-pentanol (2-PP) lung cancer biomarkers and changes in the humidity, flow rate, and temperature of the flowing gas. The optimal dimension of the tubes was determined and verified through dynamic simulations and experiments. The current tube design decreases sensing variation and moisture interference by 43.28% and 78.77%, respectively, compared with previous designs. In the future, the proposed breath sensor, which has a response time of less than 10 s, can be used in a tube for simple and quick screening of lung cancer patients with the 2-PP concentration exceeding 100 ppb. The developed breath-sensing platform can be applied in noninvasive on-site disease screening.

Essential functions of C terminus of Drosophila Topoisomerase IIIα in double holliday junction dissolution.

Topoisomerase IIIα (Top3α) is an essential component of the double Holliday junction (dHJ) dissolvasome complex in metazoans, along with Blm and Rmi1/2. This important anti-recombinogenic function cannot be performed by Top3ß, the other type IA topoisomerase present in metazoans. The two share a catalytic core but diverge in their tail regions. To understand this difference in function, we investigated the role of the unique C terminus of Top3α. The Drosophila C terminus contains an insert region not conserved among metazoans. This insert contributes an independent interaction with Blm, which may account for the absence of Rmi1 in Drosophila. Mutant Top3α lacking this insert maintains the ability to perform dHJ dissolution but only partially rescues a top3α null fly line, indicating an in vivo role for the insert. Truncation of the C terminus has a minimal effect on the type IA relaxation activity of Top3α; however, dHJ dissolution is greatly reduced. The Top3α C terminus was found to strongly interact with both Blm and DNA, which are critical to the dissolution reaction; these interactions are greatly reduced in the truncated enzyme. The truncation mutant also cannot rescue the viability of top3α null flies, indicating an essential in vivo role. Our data therefore suggest that the Top3α C terminus has an important role in dHJ dissolution (by providing an interaction interface for Blm and DNA) and an essential function in vivo.