Differentiation and identification of analogous chemical or biological substances with biosensors

• US 20060213271A1
• Filed: 03/25/2005
• Published: 09/28/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/25/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: P.J. Edmonson Ltd.
• Original Assignee: P.J. Edmonson Ltd.
• Inventors: Lee, Sang Hun, Edmonson, Peter J., Stubbs, Desmond D., Hunt, William D.
• Granted Patent: US 7,451,649 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 73/579
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2291/0255 (Bio)chemical reactions, e.g. on biosensors
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2291/0256 Adsorption, desorption, surface mass change, e.g. on biosensors
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2291/0422 Shear waves, transverse waves, horizontally polarised waves
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2291/0423 Surface waves, e.g. Rayleigh waves, Love waves
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2291/0426 Bulk waves, e.g. quartz crystal microbalance, torsional waves
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2291/0427 Flexural waves, plate waves, e.g. Lamb waves, tuning fork, cantilever
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2291/045 External reflections, e.g. on reflectors
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 29/022 Fluid sensors based on microsensors, e.g. quartz crystal-microbalance [QCM], surface acoustic wave [SAW] devices, tuning forks, cantilevers, flexural plate wave [FPW] devices microdevices per se B81B
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 29/036 by measuring frequency or resonance of acoustic waves
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 29/4481 Neural networks
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/54373 involving physiochemical end-point determination, e.g. wave-guides, FETS, gratings

Abstract

A biosensor detection system for detecting a particular substance has at least two biosensor devices. Each biosensor device includes a piezoelectric material, an input transducer mounted on the piezoelectric material to receive an input radio frequency signal and propagate a corresponding acoustic wave within the piezoelectric material and an output transducer mounted on the piezoelectric material to receive the acoustic wave and transmit a corresponding output radio frequency signal. A biolayer is mounted on the piezoelectric material to receive a substance to be tested and cause a corresponding change in the acoustic wave. An oscillator circuit is connected to the input transducer and to the output transducer, the oscillator circuit including an amplifier and providing an output signal indicative of a change in the acoustic wave. The biosensor devices having two different biolayers, whereby the output signals can be utilized to detect receipt of a particular substance by the biolayers of the biosensor devices.

Claims

1. A biosensor detection system for detecting a particular substance, said system having:

at least two biosensor devices, each biosensor device including;

a piezoelectric material,

an input transducer mounted on the piezoelectric material to receive an input radio frequency signal and propagate a corresponding acoustic wave within the piezoelectric material,

an output transducer mounted on the piezoelectric material to receive the acoustic wave and transmit a corresponding output radio frequency signal,

a biolayer mounted on the piezoelectric material to receive a substance to be tested and cause a corresponding change in the acoustic wave, and

an oscillator circuit connected to the input transducer and to the output transducer, said oscillator circuit including an amplifier and providing an output signal indicative of a change in the acoustic wave,

the biosensor devices having two different biolayers, whereby the output signals can be utilized to detect receipt of a particular substance by the biolayers of the biosensor devices.

2. A biosensor detection system according to claim 1 including a signal state-space map formulator operable to produce a signal state-space map from the output signals whereby receipt of the particular substance by the biolayers of the biosensor devices can be detected.

3. A biosensor detection system according to claim 1 wherein each transducer is an interdigitated transducer.

4. A biosensor detection system according to claim 3 wherein the biolayer of each biosensor device is located on an interdigital transducer.

5. A biosensor detection system according to claim 1 wherein each transducer also includes a first reflector array mounted on the piezoelectric material to receive the acoustic wave and reflect the acoustic wave back to the input transducer, and a second reflector array mounted on the piezoelectric material to receive the acoustic wave and reflect the acoustic wave back to the output transducer.

6. A biosensor detection system according to claim 5 wherein the biolayer of each biosensor device is located on a reflector array.

7. A biosensor detection system according to claim 1 wherein the biolayer of each biosensor device is located on a portion of the piezoelectric material other than on a transducer or a reflector array.

8. A biosensor detection system according to claim 1 wherein the biolayer of each biosensor device comprises an antibody different from an antibody of the biolayer of the other biosensor device.

9. A biosensor detection system according to claim 8 wherein the antibodies are orthogonal to each other.

10. A biosensor detection system according to claim 8 wherein the antibodies are semi-orthogonal to each other.

11. A method of detecting a particular substance using a biosensor detection system, said method including:

providing at least two biosensor devices, each biosensor device including;

a piezoelectric material,

an input transducer mounted on the piezoelectric material to receive an input radio frequency signal and propagate a corresponding acoustic wave within the piezoelectric material,

an output transducer mounted on the piezoelectric material to receive the surface acoustic wave and transmit a corresponding output radio frequency signal,

a biolayer mounted on the piezoelectric material to receive a substance to be tested and cause a corresponding change in the acoustic wave, and

an oscillator circuit connected to the input transducer and to the output transducer, said oscillator circuit including an amplifier and producing an output signal indicative of a change in the acoustic wave,

the biosensor devices having different biolayers,

supplying a substance to be tested to the biolayers of the biosensor devices, and

utilizing the output signals from the biosensor devices to detect receipt of the particular substance by the biolayers of the biosensor devices.

12. A method according to claim 11 including producing a signal state-space map from the output signals to enable receipt of a particular substance by the biolayers of the biosensor devices to be detected.

13. A method of detecting and characterizing a particular substance using a sensor detection system, said method including:

providing a system with at least two sensor devices, each sensor device including;

an X channel detector for detecting substance X and producing an X channel output signal proportional to the amount of substance X present and,

a Y channel detector for detecting substance Y and producing a Y channel output signal proportional to the amount of substance Y present,

channel detectors X and Y comprising analogous chemical or biological groups operable to recognize similar structural analogs within substances Y and X, and

substances X and Y comprising analogous chemical or biological groups operable to recognize similar structural analogs within channel detectors Y and X, and

supplying a substance to be tested to the channel detectors and utilizing the output signals from the channel detectors to identify receipt by the channel detectors of the substance.

14. A method according to claim 13 including producing a signal state-space map from the output signals.