Fluid processing device and method

• US 20070026439A1
• Filed: 07/17/2006
• Published: 02/01/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 07/15/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Applied Biosystems LLC (Thermo Fisher Scientific Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Applera Corporation (Thermo Fisher Scientific Incorporated)
• Inventors: Faulstich, Konrad, Oldham, Mark
• Application Number:
  US11/487,729
• Publication Number:
  US 20070026439A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 435/6
• CPC Class Codes: B01F 33/30 Micromixers
• CPC Class Codes: B01F 35/713 comprising breaking packages or parts thereof, e.g. piercing or opening sealing elements between compartments or cartridges containers or packages per se B65D
• CPC Class Codes: B01F 35/7139 Removing separation walls, plugs which close off the different compartments, e.g. by rotation or axially sliding
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2200/10 Integrating sample preparation and analysis in single entity, e.g. lab-on-a-chip concept
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/044 pierceable, e.g. films, membranes
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/06 Auxiliary integrated devices, integrated components
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0672 Integrated piercing tool
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0816 Cards, e.g. flat sample carriers usually with flow in two horizontal directions
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0829 Multi-well plates; Microtitration plates
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0864 comprising only one inlet and multiple receiving wells, e.g. for separation, splitting
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0887 Laminated structure
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/14 Means for pressure control
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/18 Means for temperature control
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0406 capillary forces
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0409 centrifugal forces
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0487 fluid pressure, pneumatics
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0677 phase change valves; Meltable, freezing, dissolvable plugs; Destructible barriers
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0683 mechanically breaking a wall or membrane within a channel or chamber
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0694 vents used to stop and induce flow, backpressure valves
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/5025 for parallel transport of multiple samples
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/5027 : by integrated microfluidic structures, i.e. dimensions of channels and chambers are such that surface tension forces are important, e.g. lab-on-a-chip B01L3/5023 takes precedence; micromixers B01F33/30; microreactors for synthesis B01J19/0093; microcapillary devices in general B81B1/00
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/502715 : characterised by interfacing components, e.g. fluidic, electrical, optical or mechanical interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/502723 : characterised by venting arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/50273 : characterised by the means or forces applied to move the fluids micropumps F04B19/006, of the membrane type F04B43/043
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/502738 : characterised by integrated valves microvalves F16K99/0001
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/502761 : specially adapted for handling suspended solids or molecules independently from the bulk fluid flow, e.g. for trapping or sorting beads, for physically stretching molecules investigating characteristics of particles G01N15/00
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/50851 : specially adapted for heating or cooling samples laboratory heating apparatus B01L7/00; incubators C12M
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/563 : Joints or fittings in general F16L; Separable fluid transfer means to transfer fluids between at least two containers, e.g. connectors
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 7/52 : with provision for submitting samples to a predetermined sequence of different temperatures, e.g. for treating nucleic acid samples amplification or hybridisation processes per se C12Q1/68; controlling sequential reactions for synthesis B01J19/0046
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 7/525 : with physical movement of samples between temperature zones
• CPC Class Codes: C12Q 1/686 : Polymerase chain reaction [PCR]

Abstract

A fluid processing device and methods are provided that can process one or many different fluid samples, detection for each of which can be multiplexed to detect the presence or absence of each of a panel of target sequences, for example 20 different target sequences. The device can comprise a substrate and one or more fluid processing pathways at least partially defined by the substrate. Each fluid processing pathway can comprise a pre-amplification region and two or more amplification regions disposed downstream from and in fluid communication with the pre-amplification region. A burstable valve can be disposed along each fluid processing pathway and the downstream regions can contain pre-loaded ammonia gas to draw an amplified sample downstream.

Claims

1. A fluid processing device, comprising:

a substrate comprising a first surface and an opposing second surface; and

one or more fluid processing pathways at least partially defined by the substrate, the one or more fluid processing pathways each comprising

a first region comprising pre-amplification reaction components disposed therein and adapted to pre-amplify a plurality of different nucleic acid sequences present in a sample to produce a plurality of pre-amplified sequences, and

two or more second regions each in fluid communication with the first region and comprising amplification reaction components disposed therein adapted to amplify one or more of the plurality of pre-amplified sequences to produce one or more amplified target sequences.

2. The fluid processing device of claim 1, wherein the two or more second regions are each vented.

3. The fluid processing device of claim 1, wherein the amplification reaction components comprise amplification reaction components adapted to amplify at least portions of two or more different sequences of the plurality of pre-amplified sequences.

4. A fluid processing system, comprising:

the fluid processing device of claim 1;

and

a detector capable of optical communication with the two or more second regions of each fluid pathway, the detector being adapted to detect, in the two or more second regions, one or more amplified target sequences each labeled with a respective detectable label.

5. A fluid processing device, comprising:

a substrate having a first surface and an opposing second surface; and

one or more fluid processing pathways at least partially defined by the substrate, the one or more fluid processing pathways each comprising

at least one heat-mediated, pressure-actuated valve adapted to burst when a pressure of at least two atmospheres is exerted across the valve and the valve is heated to a temperature of from about 100°

C. to about 130°

C.

6. A fluid processing device comprising:

a substrate having a first surface and an opposing second surface; and

one or more fluid processing pathways at least partially defined by the substrate, the one or more fluid processing pathways each comprising

a first region; and

one or more sealed regions disposed downstream from and in fluid communication with the first region, the one or more sealed regions comprising ammonia gas.

7. The fluid processing device of claim 6, wherein the one or more sealed regions comprise pre-loaded ammonia gas.

8. The fluid processing device of claim 7, wherein the first region further comprises one or more buffering components sufficient to at least partially neutralize a pH of a fluid sample after communication of the fluid sample with the ammonia gas.

9. The fluid processing device of claim 7, wherein the first region comprises pre-amplification components disposed therein adapted to pre-amplify a plurality of different nucleic acid sequences present in a fluid sample to produce a plurality of pre-amplified sequences upon pre-amplification of the fluid sample.

10. A method, comprising:

providing a fluid processing device comprising one or more fluid processing pathways, each fluid processing pathway comprising a first region in fluid communication with two or more second regions;

introducing a fluid sample comprising a plurality of different nucleic acid sequences from at least one template, into the first region of the fluid processing device;

pre-amplifying two or more of the plurality of different nucleic acid sequences in the first region to produce a pre-amplified fluid sample comprising a plurality of pre-amplified nucleic acid sequences;

moving the pre-amplified fluid sample from the first region to the two or more second regions; and

amplifying at least one respective target nucleic acid sequence of the plurality of pre-amplified nucleic acid sequences in each of the two or more second regions, to produce an amplified fluid sample comprising at least one respective amplified target nucleic acid sequence in each of the two or more second regions.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the one or more fluid processing pathways each further comprise at least one channel fluidly connecting the first region and the two or more second regions.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein moving comprises moving the pre-amplified fluid sample from the first region, through at least one channel, and into the two or more second regions.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein moving comprises centrifuging the fluid processing device.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the amplifying comprises exponential amplification.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein the pre-amplifying comprises thermal cycling the fluid sample in the first reaction region.

16. A method, comprising:

providing a fluid processing device comprising one or more fluid processing pathways each comprising a first region, and at least one sealed region disposed downstream from and in fluid communication with the first region, wherein the at least one sealed region comprises ammonia gas;

retaining a fluid sample in the first region;

contacting the ammonia gas contained in the at least one sealed region with the fluid sample, wherein the fluid sample is drawn into the at least one sealed region as the ammonia gas dissolves into the fluid sample.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the at least one sealed region comprises pre-loaded ammonia gas.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising loading ammonia gas into the at least one sealed region.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein the one or more fluid processing pathways further comprises a valve disposed between and in fluid communication with the first region and at least one sealed region.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the valve comprises a heat-mediated, pressure-actuated valve.