REACTION VESSEL COMPRISING CONDUCTIVE LAYER AND INNER NON-METALLIC LAYER

• US 20100297707A1
• Filed: 08/01/2008
• Published: 11/25/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/03/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rapid Diagnostics ML Limited
• Original Assignee: Enigma Diagnostics Limited
• Inventors: Gregory, George Richard, Squirrell, David James, Jones, Ross Peter, Gutsell, Graham, Williamson, Roger James, Lee, Martin Alan
• Granted Patent: US 9,138,748 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 435/91.2
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0858 Side walls
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0887 Laminated structure
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/16 Surface properties and coatings
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/1827 using resistive heater
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/1883 using thermal insulation
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/50851 specially adapted for heating or cooling samples laboratory heating apparatus B01L7/00; incubators C12M
• 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: G01N 21/0332 with temperature control control of temperature G05D23/00; cryostats F17C3/08

Abstract

A reaction vessel for conducting a chemical or biochemical reaction, such as a polymerase chain reaction wherein at least one wall of said vessel comprises a metallic layer and an inner non-metallic layer. Reaction systems comprising combinations of vessels of the invention and apparatus for heating them, as well as particular reactions vessels are also described and claimed.

Claims

1. A reaction vessel for conducting a chemical or biochemical reaction, wherein said reaction vessel comprises a capillary vessel or a flattened capillary vessel and at least one wall of said reaction vessel comprises a highly thermally conducting layer and an inner non-metallic layer.

2. The reaction vessel according to claim 1 wherein the highly thermally conducting layer is a metallic layer.

3. The reaction vessel according to claim 1, wherein said reaction vessel comprises long walls, wherein the one wall forming at least one of the long walls.

4. The reaction vessel according to claim 3 wherein a base of the capillary vessel or the flattened capillary vessel is of a transparent material.

5. The reaction vessel according to claim 4 wherein a seal is provided between the transparent material and the capillary vessel or the flattened capillary vessel.

6. The reaction vessel according to claim 1 wherein an entire side wall of the reaction vessel comprises a metallic layer and an inner non-metallic layer.

7. The reaction vessel according to claim 1 wherein the thermally conducting layer is a metallic layer which comprises aluminium.

8. The reaction vessel according to claim 1 wherein the inner non-metallic layer is a polymeric material, glass, a passivated metal or a combination of these.

9. The reaction vessel according to claim 8 wherein the polymeric layer comprises parylene or a derivative thereof.

10. The reaction vessel according to claim 1 which is adapted for use in a block heater.

11. The reaction vessel according to claim 1 which further comprises a heating system.

12. The reaction vessel according to claim 11 wherein the heating system is an integral heating system.

13. The reaction vessel according to claim 12 wherein the integral heating system comprises a resistive heating element, which is arranged outside a metallic layer, but which is electrically insulated from the metallic layer.

14. The reaction vessel according to claim 13 wherein the resistive heating element comprises electrically conducting polymer.

15. The reaction vessel according to claim 13 wherein the resistive heating element is insulated from the metallic layer by an insulating layer therebetween.

16. The reaction vessel according to claim 15 wherein the insulating layer is a layer of anodized aluminium, or is a polymer layer.

17. The reaction vessel according to claim 16 wherein the insulating layer is a polymer layer.

18. The reaction vessel according to claim 17 wherein the polymer layer comprises parylene or a derivative thereof.

19. The reaction vessel according to claim 14 which further comprises a barbed electrical contact which pierces a surface of the electrically conducting polymer and is connectable to a control system which allows controllable heating of the electrically conducting polymer.

20. The reaction vessel according to claim 14 wherein a radial thickness of the electrically conducting polymer varies along the reaction vessel so as to reduce thermal gradients therealong.

21. A reaction system comprising a reaction vessel according to claim 1, and an apparatus which accommodates said reaction vessel, and the apparatus comprises a heating system adapted to controllably heat and cool said reaction vessel.

22. The reaction system according to claim 21 wherein the thermally conducting layer of the wall of the reaction vessel is a metallic layer, and the heating system is an induction heating system, able to interact with the metallic layer of the reaction vessel so as to heat it by induction.

23. The reaction system according to claim 21 wherein the heating system supplies heated fluid to the reaction vessel or a vicinity thereof, so as to effect heating, and is optionally also able to supply non-heated fluid to the reaction vessel or the vicinity thereof, so as to effect cooling.

24. The reaction system according to claim 21 wherein the reaction vessel comprises an integral heating system comprising a resistive heating element, which is arranged outside a metallic layer, but which is electrically insulated from the metallic layer, and wherein the integral heating system is connected to the electrically conducting polymer.

25. The reaction system according to claim 23 wherein the apparatus comprises a solid foam material arranged in direct contact with at least one electrical connector of a resistive heating element.

26. The reaction system according to claim 25 wherein the foam material is a honeycomb or reticulated foam.

27. The reaction system according to claim 25 wherein the foam material forms a pillared or corrugated mount for the electrical connector.

28. The reaction system according to claim 21 wherein the apparatus is able to accommodate multiple reaction vessels.

29. A method for carrying out a chemical or biochemical reaction which requires at least one heating step, said method comprising placing chemical or biochemical reagents into a reaction vessel according to claim 1 and heating said reagents so as to bring about said chemical or biochemical reaction.

30. The method according to claim 29 wherein the reaction requires thermal cycling.

31. The method according to claim 30 wherein the reaction is a polymerase chain reaction.

33. The reaction system according to claim 23 wherein the heated fluid is air.

34. A method for carrying out a chemical or biochemical reaction which requires at least one heating step, said method comprising placing chemical or biochemical regiments into the reaction vessel of the reaction system according to claim 21 and heating said reagent so as to bring about said chemical or biochemical reaction.

32. A reaction vessel heating system, which comprises an electrically conducting polymer, arranged to act as a heating element for a reaction vessel, and one or more barbed electrical contacts, able to pierce the surface of the electrically conducting polymer.