In vitro evolution in microfluidic systems
First Claim
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1. A method for detecting a selectable change within a microcapsule, comprising the steps of:
- forming a plurality of aqueous microcapsules in a fluorinated oil comprising a fluorinated polymer surfactant, wherein each aqueous microcapsule comprises a cell and a first genetic element;
pooling the aqueous microcapsules such that a portion of the aqueous microcapsules contact each other without fusing together;
incubating the pooled microcapsules to cause the first genetic element to interact with a molecule associated with the cell; and
detecting a selectable change in one or more of the pooled microcapsules.
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Abstract
The invention describes a method for isolating one or more genetic elements encoding a gene product having a desired activity, comprising the steps of: (a) compartmentalising genetic elements into microcapsules; and (b) sorting the genetic elements which express the gene product having the desired activity; wherein at least one step is under microfluidic control. The invention enables the in vitro evolution of nucleic acids and proteins by repeated mutagenesis and iterative applications of the method of the invention.
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19 Claims
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1. A method for detecting a selectable change within a microcapsule, comprising the steps of:
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forming a plurality of aqueous microcapsules in a fluorinated oil comprising a fluorinated polymer surfactant, wherein each aqueous microcapsule comprises a cell and a first genetic element; pooling the aqueous microcapsules such that a portion of the aqueous microcapsules contact each other without fusing together; incubating the pooled microcapsules to cause the first genetic element to interact with a molecule associated with the cell; and detecting a selectable change in one or more of the pooled microcapsules. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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Specification