Microfluidic device and method of using same

• US 9,211,537 B2
• Filed: 11/07/2008
• Issued: 12/15/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/07/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: University of British Columbia
• Original Assignee: University of British Columbia
• Inventors: Hansen, Carl Lars Genghis, Tropini, Carolina
• Primary Examiner(s): FORMAN, BETTY J
• Application Number:
  US12/741,880
• Publication Number:
  US 20110053151A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,594 Days
• Field of Search: 422/501, 435/283.1
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00317 Microwell devices, i.e. having large numbers of wells
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00396 Membrane valves
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00398 in multiple arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00495 Means for heating or cooling the reaction vessels
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00529 DNA chips
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00596 Solid-phase processes
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00608 DNA chips
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00659 Two-dimensional arrays
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00722 Nucleotides
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2200/0605 Metering of fluids
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2200/0621 Control of the sequence of chambers filled or emptied
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2200/0642 Filling fluids into wells by specific techniques
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2200/0689 Sealing
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2200/16 Reagents, handling or storing thereof
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0819 Microarrays; Biochips
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0829 Multi-well plates; Microtitration plates
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0864 comprising only one inlet and multiple receiving wells, e.g. for separation, splitting
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/123 Flexible; Elastomeric
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/1805 Conductive heating, heat from thermostatted solids is conducted to receptacles, e.g. heating plates, blocks
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0487 fluid pressure, pneumatics
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/5025 : for parallel transport of multiple samples
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/5027 : by integrated microfluidic structures, i.e. dimensions of channels and chambers are such that surface tension forces are important, e.g. lab-on-a-chip B01L3/5023 takes precedence; micromixers B01F33/30; microreactors for synthesis B01J19/0093; microcapillary devices in general B81B1/00
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/502723 : characterised by venting arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/50273 : characterised by the means or forces applied to move the fluids micropumps F04B19/006, of the membrane type F04B43/043
• 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: G06F 3/017 : Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04815 : Interaction with a metaphor-based environment or interaction object displayed as three-dimensional, e.g. changing the user viewpoint with respect to the environment or object
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 : Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence

Abstract

A microfluidic device comprising a plurality of reaction chambers in fluid communication with a flow channel formed in an elastomeric substrate, a vapor barrier for preventing evaporation from the plurality of reaction chambers, and a continuous phase fluid for isolation of each of the plurality of reaction chambers.

Claims

1. A microfluidic device comprising:

a polymer substrate comprising a plurality of blind reaction chambers in coplanar array;

a flow channel having an inlet at a first end and an outlet at a second end; and

a vapor barrier substrate impermeable to water vapor and applied in a parallel plane to the plurality of blind reaction chambers and separated from the blind reaction chambers by a layer of polymer of the polymer substrate;

wherein each blind reaction chamber is in fluid communication with the flow channel at a location in between the inlet and outlet, and wherein the polymer substrate is vapor permeable and the layer of polymer has a sufficient thickness to absorb gases displaced from the blind reaction chambers by a liquid that fills the blind reaction chambers and wherein the vapor barrier substrate and layer of polymer have a geometry that establishes a substantially two dimensional gradient of water vapor such that evaporation only occurs through one or more sides of the polymer substrate.

2. The device of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of valves disposed along the flow channel, each of the plurality of valves comprising one or more control channels intersecting the flow channel.

3. The device of claim 2 wherein the valves are positioned at the first and second ends of the flow channel.

4. The device of claim 1 wherein the reaction chambers have a volume between about 1 fL and about 1000 fL.

5. The device of claim 1 wherein the reaction chambers are about 10 pL to about 100 pL volume.

6. The device of claim 1 wherein the reaction chamber has one or more pre-deposited reagents.

7. The device of claim 1 wherein the blind reaction chambers in coplanar array have a pitch of less than about 100 μ

m.

8. The device of claim 1 wherein the layer of polymer has a thickness of about 10 μ

m to about 500 μ

m.

9. The device of claim 1 wherein the reaction chambers are present at a density of 5000 or greater chambers/cm².

10. A microfluidic device comprising:

a polymer substrate comprising a plurality of blind reaction chambers in coplanar array;

a flow channel having an inlet at a first end and an outlet at a second end;

a vapor barrier substrate impermeable to water vapor and applied in a parallel plane to the plurality of blind reaction chambers and separated from the blind reaction chambers by a layer of polymer of the polymer substrate;

wherein each blind reaction chamber is in fluid communication with the flow channel at a location in between the inlet and outlet, and wherein the polymer substrate is vapor permeable and the layer of polymer has a sufficient thickness to absorb gases displaced from the blind reaction chambers by a first liquid that fills the blind reaction chambers and wherein the vapor barrier substrate and layer of polymer have a geometry that establishes a substantially two dimensional gradient of water vapor such that evaporation only occurs though one or more sides of the polymer substrate; and

wherein each of the plurality of blind reaction chambers contains the first liquid and is bounded by walls of the polymeric substrate and wherein a second liquid in the flow channel is immiscible with the first liquid and forms a liquid barrier preventing liquid communication of the first liquid between two or more reaction chambers.

11. The device of claim 10, further a plurality of valves disposed along the flow channel, each of the plurality of valves comprising one or more control channels intersecting the flow channel.