System and methods for monitoring the amplification and dissociation behavior of DNA molecules
First Claim
1. A method, comprising:
- (a) introducing into a microchannel at least one bolus containing nucleic acid;
(b) forcing the bolus to move through the microchannel;
(c) while the bolus is moving through the microchannel, (i) causing a thermal generating apparatus to cycle the temperature of the bolus to amplify nucleic acid contained in the bolus, wherein the thermal generating apparatus sequentially controls temperature during amplification and thermal denaturation, the thermal denaturation being performed after the amplification is completed and (ii) at least once per temperature cycle determining whether a predetermined emission intensity threshold has been met, wherein the step of determining whether the predetermined emission intensity threshold has been met comprises using an image sensor to capture an image of the bolus and processing the captured image data to determine the intensity of light emitted from the bolus;
(d) in response to determining that the predetermined emission intensity threshold has not been met, then repeating step (c); and
(e) in response to determining that the predetermined emission intensity threshold has been met, then, causing said thermal generating apparatus to cease the temperature cycling and causing said thermal generating apparatus to gradually increase the temperature of the bolus, while the bolus is still moving through the microchannel, causing thermal denaturation of dsDNA within the bolus to transition to ssDNA and using the image sensor to capture images of the bolus.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The present invention relates to systems and methods for monitoring the amplification of DNA molecules and the dissociation behavior of the DNA molecules. A method according to one embodiment of the invention may include the steps of: forcing a sample of a solution containing real-time PCR reagents to move though a channel; and while the sample is moving through an analysis region of the channel, performing the steps of: (a) cycling the temperature of the sample until the occurrence of a predetermined event; (b) after performing step (a), causing the sample'"'"'s temperature to gradually increase from a first temperature to a second temperature; and (c) while the step of gradually increasing the sample'"'"'s temperature is performed, using an image sensor to monitor emissions from the sample.
20 Citations
25 Claims
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1. A method, comprising:
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(a) introducing into a microchannel at least one bolus containing nucleic acid; (b) forcing the bolus to move through the microchannel; (c) while the bolus is moving through the microchannel, (i) causing a thermal generating apparatus to cycle the temperature of the bolus to amplify nucleic acid contained in the bolus, wherein the thermal generating apparatus sequentially controls temperature during amplification and thermal denaturation, the thermal denaturation being performed after the amplification is completed and (ii) at least once per temperature cycle determining whether a predetermined emission intensity threshold has been met, wherein the step of determining whether the predetermined emission intensity threshold has been met comprises using an image sensor to capture an image of the bolus and processing the captured image data to determine the intensity of light emitted from the bolus; (d) in response to determining that the predetermined emission intensity threshold has not been met, then repeating step (c); and (e) in response to determining that the predetermined emission intensity threshold has been met, then, causing said thermal generating apparatus to cease the temperature cycling and causing said thermal generating apparatus to gradually increase the temperature of the bolus, while the bolus is still moving through the microchannel, causing thermal denaturation of dsDNA within the bolus to transition to ssDNA and using the image sensor to capture images of the bolus. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A method for use in a system comprising a substrate comprising a channel, the method comprising:
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forcing a sample of a solution containing real-time PCR reagents to move though the channel; and while the sample is moving through an analysis region of the channel performing the steps of; (a) causing thermal generating apparatus to cycle the temperature of the sample, wherein the thermal generating apparatus sequentially controls temperature during amplification and thermal denaturation, the thermal denaturation being performed after the amplification is completed; (b) at least once per temperature cycle, determining whether nucleic acid in the sample has been sufficiently amplified by using an image sensor to capture an image of the bolus and processing the captured image data to determine the intensity of light emitted from the bolus; (c) in response to determining that a rate of change in the intensity of light emitted from the bolus is less than a predetermined threshold, causing said thermal generating apparatus to cease the cycling of the temperature of the sample and causing said thermal generating apparatus to gradually increase the sample'"'"'s temperature from a first temperature to a second temperature to cause thermal denaturation of the nucleic acid; and (d) while the step of gradually increasing the sample'"'"'s temperature is performed, using an image sensor to monitor emissions from the sample. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A method, comprising:
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(a) introducing into a microchannel at least one bolus containing nucleic acid; (b) forcing the bolus to move through the microchannel; (c) while the bolus is moving through the microchannel, (i) controlling a thermal generating apparatus to cycle the temperature of the bolus to amplify nucleic add contained in the bolus, wherein the thermal generating apparatus sequentially controls temperature amplification and thermal denaturation, the thermal denaturation being performed after the amplification is completed and (ii) determining at least once per temperature cycle whether the bolus has been exposed to at least a predetermined number of temperature cycles; and (d) in response to determining that the bolus has been exposed to at least a predetermined number of temperature cycles, then, ceasing the temperature cycling and, while the bolus is still moving through the microchannel, controlling said thermal generating apparatus to cause thermal denaturation of dsDNA within the bolus to transition to ssDNA and using an image sensor to capture images of the bolus. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25)
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Specification