Methods and systems for using encapsulated microbubbles to process biological samples
First Claim
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1. A method for using nanodroplets to process a biological sample, the method comprising:
- creating a mixture comprising nanodroplets mixed with a biological sample, wherein the nanodroplets each comprise a liquid core which remains metastable in a liquid form until the application of conversion energy and wherein the biological sample comprises DNA or DNA cross-linked to protein extracted from cells; and
adding the conversion energy to the mixture to cause at least some of the nanodroplets to convert to encapsulated microbubbles, wherein the encapsulated microbubbles comprise of at least one of a lipid, a surfactant, an emulsifier, a polymer, and a protein and adding activation energy to the mixture to cause the encapsulated microbubbles to oscillate or burst, and thereby processing the biological sample sufficiently to shear the DNA or DNA cross-linked to the protein in the biological sample and produce DNA fragments having a size distribution narrower than a size distribution of DNA fragments produced through sonication of the biological sample without using metastable nanodroplets.
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Abstract
Methods and systems for using encapsulated microbubbles to process biological samples are disclosed. According to one aspect, a method for using encapsulated microbubbles to process a biological sample includes creating a mixture comprising encapsulated microbubbles mixed with a biological sample and adding activation energy to the mixture to cause at least some of the microbubbles to oscillate or burst and thereby process the sample, including effecting cell lysis, shearing DNA, and/or performing tissue dispersion.
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Citations
21 Claims
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1. A method for using nanodroplets to process a biological sample, the method comprising:
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creating a mixture comprising nanodroplets mixed with a biological sample, wherein the nanodroplets each comprise a liquid core which remains metastable in a liquid form until the application of conversion energy and wherein the biological sample comprises DNA or DNA cross-linked to protein extracted from cells; and adding the conversion energy to the mixture to cause at least some of the nanodroplets to convert to encapsulated microbubbles, wherein the encapsulated microbubbles comprise of at least one of a lipid, a surfactant, an emulsifier, a polymer, and a protein and adding activation energy to the mixture to cause the encapsulated microbubbles to oscillate or burst, and thereby processing the biological sample sufficiently to shear the DNA or DNA cross-linked to the protein in the biological sample and produce DNA fragments having a size distribution narrower than a size distribution of DNA fragments produced through sonication of the biological sample without using metastable nanodroplets. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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Specification