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Background
Diana Snelling is originally
from Middletown, OH. She received a B.S.
in Chemical Engineering from The Ohio State
University in 2006. As an undergraduate,
she researched the use of cationic surfactants
to reduce turbulent drag for Dr. Jacques
Zakin at OSU. She also co-oped four quarters
at DuPont Teflon in Parkersburg, WV. She
is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Chemical
Engineering at the University of Texas at
Austin under Dr. Peppas.
Research Summary Biosensors are an essential technology in the fields of environmental analysis, medical diagnostics, bioprocess monitoring, and biowarfare agent detection. A successful biosensor must be able to respond rapidly and sensitively to its environment.
In our laboratories we have concentrated on the development of microscale biosensors using photolithography to micropattern smart hydrogels onto microcantilevers. Smart hydrogels respond to changes in their environmental condition including pH, temperature, electric field, or ionic strength. In the case of anionic pH responsive hydrogels, ionization of the acid groups occur once the pH of the environment is above the characteristic pKa of the acid group causing swelling. We are developing biodegradable smart hydrogels for the construction of degradable biosensors by incorporating hydrolytically cleavable crosslinkers. The length and hydrophilicity of these crosslinkers can be tuned and thus maximize the sensitivity and degradation rate of the resulting device.
Publications
D.K. Snelling and J.L. Zakin. “Surfactant drag reduction using mixed counterions,” Undergraduate honors thesis. The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio. May 17, 2006.
Presentations
D.K. Snelling
and N.A. Peppas. “Towards the
development of biodegradable sensors
from smart hydrogels,” US – Japan
Symposium on Drug Delivery. Lahaina,
Maui, Hawaii. December 19, 2007.
D.K. Snelling
and N.A. Peppas. “Towards the
development of biodegradable sensors
from smart hydrogels,” AIChE Annual
Meeting. Philadelphia, PA. November 21,
2008.
D.K. Snelling,
B.L. Ekerdt, and N.A. Peppas.
“Biodegradable, pH-responsive Hydrogels
as Sensing Microstructures,” Society for
Biomaterials Annual Meeting. San
Antonio, TX. April 23, 2009.
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