Polymer synthesis apparatus

• US 20040013573A1
• Filed: 03/26/2002
• Published: 01/22/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/26/2001
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Linden Technologies Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Linden Technologies Incorporated
• Inventors: Huang, Tai-Nang
• Application Number:
  US10/108,167
• Publication Number:
  US 20040013573A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 422/102
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 19/0046 Sequential or parallel reactions, e.g. for the synthesis of polypeptides or polynucleotides; Apparatus and devices for combinatorial chemistry or for making molecular arrays synthesis methods per se C40B50/00
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00385 Printing
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00459 Beads
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/005 Beads
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00608 DNA chips
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/0061 The surface being organic
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00612 the surface being inorganic
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00614 Delimitation of the attachment areas
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00626 Covalent
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00628 Ionic
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/0063 Other, e.g. van der Waals forces, hydrogen bonding
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00648 by the use of solid beads
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00722 Nucleotides
• CPC Class Codes: C07H 21/00 Compounds containing two or more mononucleotide units having separate phosphate or polyphosphate groups linked by saccharide radicals of nucleoside groups, e.g. nucleic acids

Abstract

Disclosed are compositions that include triboelectrically chargeable nucleotide particles of less than 50 μm diameter and carrier particles. In one example, a substrate is selectively patterned with the compositions, e.g., by transfer from a selectively charged surface. The compositions can be used to synthesize nucleic acid arrays.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising

applicator units, each applicator unit including a charge pattern generator, a dispenser that triboelectrically charges particles of a chemical compound having a protecting group, and a surface that is selectively chargeable by the charge pattern generator and transfers charged particles of the chemical compound from the dispenser to the substrate to form a patterned deposition of the chemical compound on a substrate;

and

a substrate path that transfers the substrate between the applicator units.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the chemical compound is a nucleotide.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the substrate is flexible.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein the substrate is paper.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein each applicator unit is in signal communication with a controller that generates image maps for each unit from a layer map.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the dispenser positively charges the particles.

7. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein each applicator unit comprises a reservoir that includes the particles of the chemical compound, the particles being less than 50 μ

m in diameter.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 wherein the particles are less than 10 μ

m in diameter.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the dispenser comprises magnetic brushes.

10. The apparatus of claim 2 further comprising a processor configured to

generate control information from nucleic acid sequence information and a user-defined surface configuration and send the control information to the applicator units, the control information indicating to the charge pattern generator, for each cycle of transferring in a nucleic acid synthesis, regions of the surface to be selectively charged or discharged.

11. The apparatus of claim 2 further comprising a transfer unit that includes an electrical field generator position to translate across a substrate that is received by the transfer unit and position in apposition to a target substrate.

12. The apparatus of claim 2 further comprising an aerosol generator that is supplied with an organic solution that includes an activator compound.

13. The apparatus of claim 12 further comprising a housing that includes the aerosol generator and is in physical communication with a source of moisture-free gas.

20. The apparatus of claim 2 that comprises at least four applicator units.

14. An apparatus comprising:

a substrate path, adapted to move a substrate;

applicator units, each applicator unit including a charge pattern generator and a dispenser that deposits charged particles of a chemical compound having a protecting group and a reactive group;

an image roll having a photoreceptor surface, the image roll configured to rotate regions of the photoreceptor surface between the applicator units and the substrate,

wherein the photoreceptor surface is selectively chargeable by the charge pattern generator for adherence to the charged particles deposited by the dispenser; and

a fuser adapted to dispense an organic solvent onto the substrate.

15. An article of machine-readable medium having encoded thereon instructions that cause a processor to effect a method comprising:

receiving information that represents a plurality of nucleic acid sequences and an nucleic acid array design configuration;

generating layer maps, wherein each of the layer map associates a position in at least a subset of the biopolymer sequences and assigns monomer identities to at least a subset of addresses of the substrate;

sequentially for each of the layer maps, processing the layer map to generate triggers for each of a plurality of selectively chargeable surfaces such that the triggers selectively illuminate regions of the selectively chargeable surface, each region corresponding to an address of the substrate, the regions being charged or discharged only if the corresponding address is assigned to the monomer for which the selectively chargeable surface is configured.

16. The article of claim 15 wherein the receiving comprises querying a user for the design configuration.

17. The article of claim 15 wherein the method that is effected further comprises sending the triggers to the respective photoreceptors.

18. A machine-based method comprising:

receiving nucleic acid sequence information that includes information representing a plurality of nucleic acid sequences;

querying a user for a user preference, the preference indicating a nucleic acid array design configuration;

generating layer maps as a function of the nucleic acid sequence information and the indicated nucleic acid design configuration, wherein each of the layer map associates a position in at least a subset of the nucleic acid sequences and assigns monomer identities to at least a subset of addresses of a substrate; and

sending the layer maps or positional information determined from the layer maps to applicator units that each include a charge pattern generator, a dispenser that triboelectrically charges particles of a given nucleotide having a protecting group, and a surface that is selectively chargeable by the charge pattern generator and transfers charged particles of the given nucleotide from the dispenser to the substrate to form a patterned deposition of the given nucleotide on a substrate.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the nucleic acid sequence information is received across a network.