Deriving Data from Enzymes' Functions.

• Position: Brief Article

The microchip shrank, accelerated, and revolutionized the world of electronics. Expect the same from the biochip, says Jonathan Dordick, Howard P. Isermann Professor of Chemical Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, N.Y., who is developing one that can study a living system of enzymes at microchip size--and microchip speed.

As scientists worldwide race to sequence the human genome, massive amounts of genetic information are being generated, but to what end? Until researchers can fully analyze and control the functioning of enzymes and other proteins under a myriad of possible variations, this data will not provide its true advantage. Enter Dordick's biochip.

Live enzymes are deposited and arranged on a...