Antibodies in this system are suspended in liquid, not attached to the tip of a fiber. "Rather than immobilizing the antibodies, we can just inject them into the liquid core," Grant says. "This makes the antibodies a whole lot happier; it's a better environment for them, and then we can inject our unknown agent directly into that liquid."

It also allows researchers to test for more than one substance at a time. A liquid wave guide core can hold more than one kind of antibody, therefore allowing the investigator to inject more than one agent at a time. These are sensors that will likely be important in future investigations by environmental scientists, researchers who might be called upon to record the presense of multiple airborne toxins or perhaps several different pollutants in a stream or river.

"We can only do so much at the tip of a fiber, but with this liquid core wave guide technique, we can vastly expand our capabilities. We're excited about it, and that's where we're going to really start concentrating our next efforts."

Grant's field demands that she be ready to explore whatever's "next." Biosensor technology is moving forward fast, with seemingly unlimited applications. It's hard for even the publishing world to keep up, a situation that doesn't faze Grant in the least.

"What we're doing is new enough that there's really no textbook for my students to use," Grant says with typical aplomb. "I basically give them a whole stack of papers to read about sensors, designs, immobilization techniques, FRET, whatever. We'll find what we need."