Micro-electrophoresis chip for moving and separating nucleic acids and other charged molecules
First Claim
1. A microelectrophoresis chip comprising a substrate having formed therein at least one separation channel for performing separation formed on a first major surface, at least two electrodes disposed within the channel to induce an electric field within the channel, a homogeneous separation medium comprising water soluble fullerenes effective to act as obstacles to migration of biopolymers in a sample applied to the microelectrophoresis chip and in that the microelectrophoresis chip further comprises a detector element disposed on the chip for observation of migrating biopolymers.
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Abstract
A microelectrophoresis chip comprises a substrate in which there are formed one or more channels, one channel for each sample to be evaluated. The channels extend for the length of the chip, a distance of generally around 1 cm, and are about 1 to 10 μm wide and 1 to 10 μm in depth. The channels are filled with a homogeneous separation matrix which acts as an obstacle to the electrophoretic migration of the charged molecules. Microelectrodes disposed in the channels are used to induce an electric filed within the homogeneous separation medium. When a voltage is applied across two or more of the microelectrodes, the charged molecules are induced to move and separate according to the electric field density, the type of solvent film, and the charge, shape and size of the charged molecule. The chip may further comprise detectors, such as light polarization detectors, fluorescence emission detectors, biosensors, electrochemical sensors or other microcomponents which may include sites for enzymatic or chemical manipulation of the moved or separated charged molecules.
81 Citations
17 Claims
- 1. A microelectrophoresis chip comprising a substrate having formed therein at least one separation channel for performing separation formed on a first major surface, at least two electrodes disposed within the channel to induce an electric field within the channel, a homogeneous separation medium comprising water soluble fullerenes effective to act as obstacles to migration of biopolymers in a sample applied to the microelectrophoresis chip and in that the microelectrophoresis chip further comprises a detector element disposed on the chip for observation of migrating biopolymers.
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6. A method for separating a mixture containing a plurality of species of biopolymers into subclasses of biopolymers comprising the steps of
(a) loading the mixture onto a chip for electrophoretic separation of charged polymers, said chip comprising a substrate having formed therein at least one separation channel for performing separation formed on a first major surface, at least two electrodes disposed within the channel to induce an electric field within the channel, a homogeneous separation medium comprising water soluble fullerenes effective to act as obstacles to migration of biopolymers in a sample applied to the microelectrophoresis chip and in that the microelectrophoresis chip further comprises a detector element disposed on the chip for observation of migrating biopolymers; - and
(b) applying an electric field to the chip to cause charged biopolymers in the mixture to migrate within the chip and be separated. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8)
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9. A method for sequencing nucleic acids comprising the steps of
(a) loading a mixture containing products from a sequencing reaction onto a chip for electrophoretic separation of charged polymers, said chip comprising a substrate having formed therein at least one separation channel for performing separation formed on a first major surface, at least two electrodes disposed within the channel to induce an electric field within the channel, a homogeneous separation medium comprising water soluble fullerenes effective to act as obstacles to migration of biopolymers in a sample applied to the microelectrophoresis chip and in that the microelectrophoresis chip further comprises a detector element disposed on the chip for observation of migrating biopolymers, (b) applying an electric field to the chip to cause charged biopolymers in the mixture to migrate within the chip; - and
(c) detecting separated bands of sequencing reaction products. - View Dependent Claims (10)
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11. An apparatus for separation of a plurality of species of biopolymers into subclasses of biopolymers comprising
(a) a holder for receiving a chip for electrohporetic separation of charged biopolymers, (b) a microelectrophoresis chip comprising a substrate having formed therein at least one separation channel for performing separation formed on a first major surface, at least two electrodes disposed within the channel to induce an electric field within the channel, a homogeneous separation medium comprising water soluble fullerenes effective to act as obstacles to migration of biopolymers in a sample applied to the microelectrophoresis chip and wherein the microelectrophoresis chip further comprises a detector element disposed on the chip for observation of migrating biopolymers disposed with the holder.
Specification