Rapid screening tests in medical diagnostic and environmental analysis are often based on oligonucleotide biochips. In this paper, we studied the stability of functionalized mesoporous silicon supports in the solid-phase synthesis of oligonucleotides, exploiting several chemical procedures. A 19-mer mixed sequence has been successfully synthesized on aminosilane-modified porous silicon photonic structures. The process and the materials have been characterized by optical reflectivity, atomic force microscopy and high-performance liquid chromatography.
Keywords: DNA synthesis; Deprotection conditions; Mesoporous silicon functionalization; Surface stability.