A novel process for inking the stamp with biomacromolecule solution used in reactive microcontact printing

This paper describes a novel process for inking the stamp with biomacromolecule solution used in reactive microcontact printing. The stamp was first coated with biomacromolecule solution such as bovine serum albumin (BSA) solution for 20 min, and then dried by soft nitrogen flow. After cooling the stamp below the dew point for 1 min and incubated at room temperature for 10 s, a thin layer of condensed water was formed on the stamp surface. Then, an aldehyde functionalized glass slide was pressed immediately onto the stamp for certain time, yielding the covalently patterning of the biomacromolecules on the aldehyde-containing surface. A notable feature of this process is that the biomacromolecule solution can be inked onto the stamp at a controlled state, neither too "dry" nor too "wet". As a result, the covalently grafting reaction can occur at a comparable speed with those in solution, while avoiding the contamination caused by dispersal of excessive solvent.