Device And Method For Making Discrete Volumes Of A First Fluid In Contact With A Second Fluid, Which Are Immiscible With Each Other

• US 20110171748A1
• Filed: 03/22/2011
• Published: 07/14/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/22/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Life Technologies Corporation (Thermo Fisher Scientific Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Life Technologies Corporation (Thermo Fisher Scientific Incorporated)
• Inventors: GREINER, Douglas P., OLDHAM, Mark F., LEHTO, Dennis A., NURSE, James C., WOJTOWICZ, Janusz B., WIYATNO, Willy, COX, David M., LEE, Linda G., WOO, Sam L., REEL, Richard T.
• Granted Patent: US 8,361,807 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 436/180
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00353 Pumps
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/0036 Nozzles
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00364 Pipettes
• 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 2219/00619 using hydrophilic or hydrophobic regions
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00626 Covalent
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00637 by coating it with another layer
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00653 the compounds being bound to electrodes embedded in or on the solid supports
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00657 One-dimensional arrays
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00659 Two-dimensional arrays
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2200/0673 Handling of plugs of fluid surrounded by immiscible fluid
• 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 2300/0864 comprising only one inlet and multiple receiving wells, e.g. for separation, splitting
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0867 Multiple inlets and one sample wells, e.g. mixing, dilution
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0421 electrophoretic flow
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0487 fluid pressure, pneumatics
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/0293 for liquids
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/502715 characterised by interfacing components, e.g. fluidic, electrical, optical or mechanical interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/502784 : specially adapted for droplet or plug flow, e.g. digital microfluidics automatic analysis using a stream of discrete samples in a tube system G01N35/08
• 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: C12Q 1/6806 : Preparing nucleic acids for analysis, e.g. for polymerase chain reaction [PCR] assay C12Q1/6804 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C12Q 1/6869 : Methods for sequencing
• CPC Class Codes: C12Q 1/6874 : involving nucleic acid arrays, e.g. sequencing by hybridisation
• CPC Class Codes: C12Q 2535/101 : Sanger sequencing method, i.e. oligonucleotide sequencing using primer elongation and dideoxynucleotides as chain terminators
• CPC Class Codes: F15C 5/00 : Manufacture of fluid circuit elements; Manufacture of assemblages of such elements integrated circuits
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 2099/0084 : Chemistry or biology, e.g. "lab-on-a-chip" technology
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 99/0001 : Microvalves microdevices B81B1/00; manufacture or treatment of devices or systems in or on a substrate B81C1/00; microfluidic structures B01L3/5027; micropumps F04B19/006
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 99/0011 : Gate valves or sliding valves
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 99/0013 : Rotary valves
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 1/14 : Suction devices, e.g. pumps; Ejector devices
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 27/44743 : Introducing samples
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 27/44769 : Continuous electrophoresis, i.e. the sample being continuously introduced, e.g. free flow electrophoresis [FFE]
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 35/08 : using a stream of discrete samples flowing along a tube system, e.g. flow injection analysis
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/0318 : Processes
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/4259 : With separate material addition
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/85978 : With pump
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/85986 : Pumped fluid control
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/86863 : Rotary valve unit
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/2575 : Volumetric liquid transfer

Abstract

Various embodiments described in the application relate to an apparatus, system, and method for generating, within a conduit, discrete volumes of one or more fluids that are immiscible with a second fluid. The discrete volumes can be used for biochemical or molecular biology procedures involving small volumes, for example, microliter-sized volumes, nanoliter-sized volumes, or smaller. The system can comprise an apparatus comprising at least one conduit operatively connected to one or more pumps for providing discrete volumes separated from one another by a fluid that is immiscible with the fluid(s) of the discrete volumes, for example, aqueous immiscible-fluid-discrete volumes separated by an oil.

Claims

1-12. -12. (canceled)

13. A system for aspirating liquids, comprising:

at least one differential pressure source;

an aspirating tube in communication with the at least one differential pressure source and comprising an intake tip;

at least one fluid container in communication with the intake tip, the at least one fluid container containing at least a first fluid and a second fluid, the first fluid and the second fluid being immiscible with each other; and

at least one intake tip positioning unit configured to alternately aspirate the first fluid and the second fluid by raising and lowering one of the at least one fluid container and the intake tip relative to the other and using differential pressure delivered by the at least one differential pressure source.

14. A system according to claim 13, wherein at least one of the first fluid and the second fluid are covered with a covering liquid layer.

15. A system according to claim 13, wherein the at least one fluid container comprises a set of wells.

16. A system according to claim 13, wherein the at least one fluid container comprises a first well containing therein both the first fluid and the second fluid in separate layers.

17. A method comprising:

disposing an intake tip of an aspirating conduit in a fluid container comprising at least first and second fluids that are immiscible with one another and form layers in the fluid container;

aspirating the first fluid through the intake tip and into the aspirating conduit;

moving one of the intake tip and the fluid container up or down relative to the other until the intake tip is immersed in the second fluid in the fluid container; and

aspirating the second fluid through the intake tip and into the aspirating conduit.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising then moving the one of the intake tip and the fluid container back until the intake tip is immersed in the first fluid and then aspirating the first fluid into the aspirating conduit.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising then moving the one of the intake tip and the fluid container back until the intake tip is immersed in the second fluid and aspirating the second fluid into the aspirating conduit.

20-58. -58. (canceled)