Methods for sorting particles

• US 8,637,318 B2
• Filed: 02/07/2013
• Issued: 01/28/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/28/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Inguran LLC
• Original Assignee: Inguran LLC
• Inventors: Durack, Gary, Wallace, Jeffrey D., Vandre, Gary P., Westfall, Lon A., Hatcher, Jeremy T., Nayak, Niraj V.
• Primary Examiner(s): Wallenhorst, Maureen
• Application Number:
  US13/762,110
• Publication Number:
  US 20130149736A1
• Time in Patent Office: 355 Days
• Field of Search: 436/63, 436/164, 436/165, 436/43, 436/50, 436/55, 436/172, 422/67, 422/68.1, 422/73, 422/82.05, 422/82.08, 435/2, 435/287.1, 435/29
• US Class Current: 436/63
• CPC Class Codes: A01N 1/0284 Temperature processes, i.e. using a designated change in temperature over time
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 5/06 Animal cells or tissues; Human cells or tissues preservation of living cells or tissues A01N1/02
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 5/061 Sperm cells, spermatogonia
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 5/0612 sorting of gametes, e.g. according to sex or motility
• CPC Class Codes: C12Q 1/02 involving viable microorganisms
• CPC Class Codes: C12Q 3/00 Condition responsive control processes apparatus therefor C12M1/36; controlling or regulating in general G05
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/01 specially adapted for biological cells, e.g. blood cells investigating sedimentation of particle suspensions in blood G01N15/05
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/1404 Handling flow, e.g. hydrodynamic focusing
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/1459 the analysis being performed on a sample stream
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/1468 with spatial resolution of the texture or inner structure of the particle
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/147 the analysis being performed on a sample stream
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/149 specially adapted for sorting particles, e.g. by their size or optical properties
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2015/1006 for cytology
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2015/1406 Control of droplet point
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2015/1415 Control of particle position
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2021/6439 with indicators, stains, dyes, tags, labels, marks
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/63 optically excited
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/6428 Measuring fluorescence of fluorescent products of reactions or of fluorochrome labelled reactive substances, e.g. measuring quenching effects, using measuring "optrodes" in vivo A61B5/00; immunoassay G01N33/53
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/48 Biological material, e.g. blood, urine G01N33/02, G01N33/26, G01N33/44, G01N33/46 take precedence; Haemocytometers counting blood corpuscules distributed over a surface by scanning the surface G06M11/02
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/5005 involving human or animal cells immunoassay G01N33/56966; immunoassays of protozoa G01N33/56905; protozoa in screening assays C12Q1/025
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/10 : Composition for standardization, calibration, simulation, stabilization, preparation or preservation; processes of use in preparation for chemical testing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/115831 : Condition or time responsive
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/12 : Condition responsive control
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/25 : including sample preparation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/2525 : Stabilizing or preserving
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/25375 : Liberation or purification of sample or separation of material from a sample [e.g., filtering, centrifuging, etc.]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/255 : including use of a solid sorbent, semipermeable membrane, or liquid extraction
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/2575 : Volumetric liquid transfer

Abstract

A method for classifying particles according to one or more particle characteristics. The method includes operating multiple flow cytometer units to form separate fluid streams that each contain a mixture of particles and to classify particles in the mixtures by interrogating the streams with beams of electromagnetic radiation. A common processor receives and processes information from the units and sends a control signal in real time to adjust the unit'"'"'s operation as a function of the information received by the common processor.

Claims

1. A multi-channel method of classifying particles according to one or more characteristics of the particles, said method comprising:

providing a plurality of flow cytometry units;

operating said flow cytometry units to conduct a plurality of flow cytometry operations, said operations comprising forming separate fluid streams each containing a mixture of particles, and classifying particles in said mixtures of particles by interrogating the streams using beams of electromagnetic radiation; and

sharing at least a common processor for receiving and processing information from the units; and

sending a control signal to one or more of the flow cytometry units in real time during a sorting process to adjust the unit'"'"'s operation as a function of the information received by the common processor.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising sharing a common source of electromagnetic radiation for said beams.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein said plurality of flow cytometry units comprises a jet-in-air droplet sorting flow cytometry unit.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising operating said plurality of flow cytometers to sort said mixture of particles based on their classification.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said particles are cells.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said particles are sperm cells.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising sharing a common source of electromagnetic radiation for said beams in the form of a single laser beam, splitting the single laser beam into multiple beams, and directing the multiple beams into optics systems of respective flow cytometry units.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising the step of sharing at least a common housing for said flow cytometry units the method further comprising guiding said single laser beam into said common housing prior to splitting the beam.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising reflecting a percentage of beam light of the single beam toward the optics system of one of said flow cytometry units, and passing a percentage of beam light of the single beam for transmission to the optics system of another of said flow cytometry units.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of sharing at least a common housing for said flow cytometry units the method further comprising removably mounting said flow cytometry units in the common housing.

11. The method of claim 1, comprising operating each flow cytometry unit to interrogate a respective fluid stream using an epi-illumination optics system.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising operating said flow cytometry units in parallel.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein said plurality of flow cytometry units comprise twelve or more flow cytometry units.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the sharing step comprises sharing at least a common processor for receiving and processing information from the units, the method further comprising using the common processor to perform at least one of the following:

(1) receive and process said information in real time; and

(2) receive and process said information to permit evaluation of the operation of one unit relative to another unit.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the sharing step comprises sharing at least a common processor for receiving and processing information from the units, the method further comprising using a sensor for each respective cytometry unit to generate a time-varying output signal indicative of at least one characteristic of the particles and using the common processor to receive the respective output signals as a substantially continuous stream and to process the output signals in real time.