Method for continuous mode processing of multiple reaction receptacles in a real-time amplification assay
First Claim
1. A method for processing the contents of multiple reaction receptacles to quantitatively determine the amount of a target nucleic acid present in each of said reaction receptacles, said method comprising the automated steps of:
- a) successively providing said reaction receptacles to a temperature-controlled chamber of an incubator having a housing defining said temperature-controlled chamber, said housing including one or more closable receptacle access openings for moving the reaction receptacles into and out of said incubator, each reaction receptacle being provided with sample material and reagents sufficient to amplify and detect the presence of a target sequence, or its complement, contained within a target nucleic acid under the temperature conditions of said incubator, wherein successively providing the reaction receptacles to said the temperature-controlled chamber comprises, for each of the reaction receptacles provided, opening one of said receptacle access openings and moving the reaction receptacle through the opened receptacle access opening and into the temperature-controlled chamber and then closing the receptacle access opening, thereby permitting ambient light from within the analyzer to enter the temperature-controlled chamber of the incubator through the opened receptacle access opening;
b) in said incubator, periodically measuring the amount of a signal associated with the presence of an amplification product containing said target sequence or its complement in each reaction receptacle provided to said incubator in accordance with step a);
c) quantifying the amount of said target nucleic acid present in each reaction receptacle based upon said measurements obtained in step b); and
d) successively removing reaction receptacles from the temperature-controlled chamber, wherein successively removing the reaction receptacles from said temperature-controlled chamber comprises, for each reaction receptacle removed from said temperature-controlled chamber, opening one of said receptacle access openings and moving the reaction receptacle through the opened receptacle access opening and out of said temperature-controlled chamber of said incubator and then closing the receptacle access opening, thereby permitting ambient light from within the analyzer to enter the temperature-controlled chamber of the incubator through the opened receptacle access opening,wherein reaction receptacles are being successively provided to said incubator in accordance with step a) as the contents of reaction receptacles previously provided to said incubator are being processed in accordance with steps b)-c).
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Accused Products
Abstract
An automated analyzer for performing multiple diagnostic assays simultaneously includes multiple stations in which discrete aspects of the assay are performed on fluid samples contained in sample vessels. The analyzer includes stations for automatically preparing a sample, incubating the sample, preforming an analyte isolation procedure, ascertaining the presence of a target analyte, and analyzing the amount of a target analyte. An automated receptacle transporting system moves the sample vessels from one station to the next. A method for performing an automated diagnostic assay includes an automated process for isolating and amplifying a target analyte, and, in one embodiment, a method for real-time monitoring of the amplification process.
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Citations
26 Claims
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1. A method for processing the contents of multiple reaction receptacles to quantitatively determine the amount of a target nucleic acid present in each of said reaction receptacles, said method comprising the automated steps of:
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a) successively providing said reaction receptacles to a temperature-controlled chamber of an incubator having a housing defining said temperature-controlled chamber, said housing including one or more closable receptacle access openings for moving the reaction receptacles into and out of said incubator, each reaction receptacle being provided with sample material and reagents sufficient to amplify and detect the presence of a target sequence, or its complement, contained within a target nucleic acid under the temperature conditions of said incubator, wherein successively providing the reaction receptacles to said the temperature-controlled chamber comprises, for each of the reaction receptacles provided, opening one of said receptacle access openings and moving the reaction receptacle through the opened receptacle access opening and into the temperature-controlled chamber and then closing the receptacle access opening, thereby permitting ambient light from within the analyzer to enter the temperature-controlled chamber of the incubator through the opened receptacle access opening; b) in said incubator, periodically measuring the amount of a signal associated with the presence of an amplification product containing said target sequence or its complement in each reaction receptacle provided to said incubator in accordance with step a); c) quantifying the amount of said target nucleic acid present in each reaction receptacle based upon said measurements obtained in step b); and d) successively removing reaction receptacles from the temperature-controlled chamber, wherein successively removing the reaction receptacles from said temperature-controlled chamber comprises, for each reaction receptacle removed from said temperature-controlled chamber, opening one of said receptacle access openings and moving the reaction receptacle through the opened receptacle access opening and out of said temperature-controlled chamber of said incubator and then closing the receptacle access opening, thereby permitting ambient light from within the analyzer to enter the temperature-controlled chamber of the incubator through the opened receptacle access opening, wherein reaction receptacles are being successively provided to said incubator in accordance with step a) as the contents of reaction receptacles previously provided to said incubator are being processed in accordance with steps b)-c). - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26)
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Specification