IBM aims to develop a chip that can sequence your genetic structure and bring portable, personalized medicine to the marketplace. The device is designated as a genome reader:
The genome reader is being designed as a silicon chip in which DNA is threaded through a pore in the chip and its characteristics are read out sequentially. The chip has tiny electrodes to produce electrical fields that can trap negatively charged DNA molecules, after which the chip will measure and sequence the DNA. Components integrated into the chip include chemical, physical and atomic layers that aid in evaluating the molecules and sequencing the genetic composition. A microprocessor, most likely residing outside the chip, would also be needed for DNA sequencing.
The DNA-reading chip might also be used for other biotechnology applications that involve sequencing human, animal, bacterial and vegetable DNA, Stolovitzky said.
I hate to use a cliché, but a step nearer Star Trek.