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Abstract

Around 3200 years ago, the legendary Solomon, the king of Hebrews was petitioned by two women, both of them claimed to be the mother of the same child. He decided to cut the child into two pieces and give half, half to each woman. Listening to this judgment, one woman cried, No! No! Don?t cut the child into but give it to the other woman. She was thus the real mother. Now DNA fingerprinting technique could have solved this problem very easily. Each cell nucleus contains chromosomes which are composed of DNA. Enclosed in the DNA are about 30,000 genes which regulate each and every function in our body. We have information about only 5% of the total DNA, remaining 95% of DNA is called ?junk? or ?extra? DNA. This extra DNA contains numerous repeated units which show higher level of variation between individuals and thus is exactly what it can offer in distinguishing one individual from other through profile. Initially DNA fingerprinting technique was used in the area of forensic sciences to solve the murder and rape cases, but now this technique has majority of uses starting from preservation of endangered species to mapping of the human genome. American President Bill Clinton and British PM Tony Blair announced on June 26, 2000 that HUMAN GENOME, and international government funded project and Celera Genomics, a private US company have both produced a working draft of the 3.1 billion chemical letters that contain the entire biological secrets of the human life. 20 Years from now, life and death will be very much different from what we experience today. Once the project cracks the final sequence every physiological function, structural details and behavioral traits will have been explained in terms of genetic makeup. It will explain that how diseases like cancer etc. occur. It will also be possible to know that if a newborn is vulnerable to certain diseases and prepare for the preventive actions. Author is the first person in the world to start SCIENTOONICS, a new branch of science communication, which deals with effective science communication using a novel class of science cartoons called scientoons. SCIENTOONS are a new class of science cartoons, based on science. They not only make you smile and laugh but also provide information about new researches, subjects and concepts in a simple, understandable and interesting way. This paper is an attempt to discuss in detail using SCIENTOONS a novel concept in science communication about the DNA Technology, Human Genome project including DNA fingerprinting technique, methodology involved and its future prospects not only in the crime detection but in several other dimensions and areas. Many distinctive and potentially useful phenomena and properties emerge as size approaches the nanoscale level. These include transport properties (momentum, energy and mass) that extend from a continuum description to a molecular description. Similarly, the optical, electrical, magnetic and chemical properties tend from a classical to a quantum description. By manipulating the matter on a nanometer scale and taking advantage of changes in the physical properties, it is possible to develop nanoscale devices and materials that provide new capabilities, tools and technologies. Recent advances in nanotechnology with respect to material sciences, micro fabrication technologies and integrated device platforms have enlarged the application from integrated circuits to biological and medical areas. Current active research and development areas include Nanocapsules, Nanocrystals, miniaturized diagnostic devices with multiplexing capabilities, micro fluidic valves, miniaturized chemical reactors, encapsulated/ nanoparticle modified drugs, drug delivery systems that incorporate nanostructures for transdermal, pulmonary and oral delivery of complex pharmaceutical and therapeutic molecules. The review will cover a) current status of nanotechnology, b) materials used in the synthesis of nanostructures, c) tools used in nano-synthesis d) application of nanotechnologies in medical diagnosis, drug delivery, e) nanotechnology based security/ anti-counterfeiting and nano-optics. Advances in the areas of in vitro diagnostic applications will be detailed with special emphasis on Point-of-Care.

Biography