Multiple laminar flow-based particle and cellular identification

• US 8,933,395 B2
• Filed: 01/31/2014
• Issued: 01/13/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: ABS Global, Inc. (Genus PLC)
• Original Assignee: Premium Genetics Ltd. (Genus PLC)
• Inventors: Mueth, Daniel, Plewa, Joseph, Shireman, Jessica, Anderson, Amy, Gruber, Lewis, Rosenbaum, Neil
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, KIET TUAN
• Application Number:
  US14/169,927
• Publication Number:
  US 20140147881A1
• Time in Patent Office: 347 Days
• Field of Search: 250/251, 356/244, 356/246, 494/36, 494/45, 435/173.1, 210/732, 210/800, 210/802
• US Class Current: 250/251
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 2/08 Radiation
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 21/0009 Settling tanks making use of electricity or magnetism electric ultra filters B01D61/425; filters making use of electricity or magnetism B01D35/06; magnetic or electrostatic separation B03C
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 21/01 using flocculating agents for purifying water C02F1/52; for liquid radioactive waste G21F9/10
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 21/262 by using a centrifuge
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2200/0652 Sorting or classification of particles or molecules
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2200/0668 Trapping microscopic beads
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0864 comprising only one inlet and multiple receiving wells, e.g. for separation, splitting
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0454 radiation pressure, optical tweezers
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/502761 specially adapted for handling suspended solids or molecules independently from the bulk fluid flow, e.g. for trapping or sorting beads, for physically stretching molecules investigating characteristics of particles G01N15/00
• CPC Class Codes: B03C 1/00 Magnetic separation
• CPC Class Codes: B03C 1/002 High gradient magnetic separation
• CPC Class Codes: B03C 1/288 disposed at the outer circumference of a recipient
• CPC Class Codes: B03C 2201/26 for use in medical applications
• CPC Class Codes: B03C 5/005 Dielectrophoresis, i.e. dielectric particles migrating towards the region of highest field strength B03C5/02 takes precedence; electrophoresis B01D57/02
• CPC Class Codes: B04B 13/00 Control arrangements specially designed for centrifuges; Programme control of centrifuges control arrangements for feed, charge, or discharge B04B11/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/0205 by optical means
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/0227 using imaging; using holography
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/04 Investigating sedimentation of particle suspensions
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/042 by centrifuging and investigating centrifugates centrifuges per se B04B
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/05 in blood
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/0631 : Separation of liquids, e.g. by absorption, wicking
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/0656 : using electric, e.g. electrostatic methods or magnetic methods by investigating individual particles G01N15/1031, G01N15/12
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/14 : Optical investigation techniques, e.g. flow cytometry
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/149 : specially adapted for sorting particles, e.g. by their size or optical properties
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2015/0053 : in liquids, e.g. trouble
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2015/0233 : using holography
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2015/0288 : Sorting the particles
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2015/035 : the optical arrangement forming an integrated apparatus with the sample container
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2015/045 : by optical analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2015/1016 : Particle flow simulating, e.g. liquid crystal cell
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2015/1028 : Sorting particles
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/6486 : Measuring fluorescence of biological material, e.g. DNA, RNA, cells G01N21/6428 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2201/061 : Sources
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2458/00 : Labels used in chemical analysis of biological material
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 27/447 : using electrophoresis
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 27/44756 : Apparatus specially adapted therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/487 : of liquid biological material
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/491 : by separating the blood components G01N15/05 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/4915 : using flow cells flow cytometry G01N15/14
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/5091 : for testing the pathological state of an organism
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 21/32 : Micromanipulators structurally combined with microscopes
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 1/0005 : Adaptation of holography to specific applications holographic optical element G02B5/32; holographic scanner G02B26/106; recognition using holographic mask G06V10/88; holographic memories G11B7/0065, G11C13/042
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 1/08 : Synthesising holograms, i.e. holograms synthesized from objects or objects from hologramsusing electric digital computers G06F; G06T
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 1/2294 : Addressing the hologram to an active spatial light modulator
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 2001/0077 : for optical manipulation, e.g. holographic optical tweezers [HOT]
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 2001/085 : Kinoform, i.e. phase only encoding wherein the computed field is processed into a distribution of phase differences
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 2225/32 : Phase only
• CPC Class Codes: G21K 5/08 : Holders for targets or for other objects to be irradiated
• CPC Class Codes: H05H 3/04 : Acceleration by electromagnetic wave pressure

Abstract

The present invention provides a method and apparatus to identify at least one component from a plurality of components in a fluid mixture, the apparatus including a first input channel into which a first flow containing a plurality of components is introduced; a plurality of buffer input channels, into which additional flows of buffer solution are introduced, disposed on either side of the first input channel; wherein the first flow and the additional flows have a flow direction along a length of the apparatus; a detector apparatus which detects and identifies selected components of the plurality of components; a laser which emits a laser beam which damages or kills selected components of the plurality of components; and at least one channel disposed at the another end of the apparatus which is adapted to receive the first flow and the additional flows after operation of the laser on the selected components.

Claims

1. An apparatus to identify at least one component from a plurality of components in a fluid mixture, the apparatus comprising:

a first input channel into which a first flow is introduced, said first flow which contains the fluid mixture of the plurality of components;

a plurality of buffer input channels, into which additional flows of buffer solution are introduced, said plurality of buffer channels which are disposed on either side of said first input channel;

wherein said first flow and said additional flows have a flow direction along a length of the apparatus from one end of the apparatus to another end of the apparatus;

a detector apparatus which detects and identifies selected components of the plurality of components;

a laser which emits a laser beam which damages or kills selected components of the plurality of components; and

at least one channel disposed at said another end of the apparatus, said at least one channel which is adapted to receive said first flow and said additional flows after operation of said laser on said selected components.

2. A method for examining and selectively operating on cells, comprising:

inputting a stream of sample fluid into an inlet adapted to received said sample fluid, into an input region of a flow chamber, said sample fluid containing cells to be processed;

inputting a plurality of streams of sheath fluids into a plurality of inlets adapted to receive said plurality of streams of sheath fluids, into said input region of said flow chamber;

wherein said sample fluid is in a contiguous relationship on all available sides with said sheath fluids, from said input region through to a selective operation region of said flow chamber;

wherein at least one of flow rates or pressures of said sheath fluids are chosen such that said sample fluid is constricted in two orthogonal directions, thereby allowing said sample fluid to form a relatively narrow stream in at least a detector region of said flow chamber, thereby causing the cells to be flattened and aligned such that flat sides of the cells are oriented parallel to confronting walls of the flow chamber;

distinguishing target cells from non-target cells in said detector region using a detector apparatus; and

damaging or destroying said target cells in said sample fluid using a laser beam, in said selective operation region of said flow chamber which is disposed downstream from said detector region.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

optically illuminating the cells in said detector region with a light beam from a laser.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein said detector in said detector region detects said target cells from said non-target cells.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein said cells are sperm cells.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein said sperm cells are one of X-chromosome or Y-chromosome sperm cells.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein said target cells are one of X-chromosome sperm cells or Y-chromosome sperm cells, and said non-target cells are the other of said X-chromosome sperm cells or Y-chromosome sperm cells.

8. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

performing gender discrimination of said sperm cells.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein said sample fluid and said sheath fluids are disposed in a flat sorter.

10. The method of claim 3, wherein the cells output light in response to said light beam, and said detector comprises an optical detector responsive to light emitted by the cells.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the output light comprises at least one of light scattered from the cells, and fluorescent light produced by the cells.

12. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

pumping said sample fluid and said sheath fluids into said input region.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein a constant flow rate and pressure are maintaining during said pumping by a pumping system.

14. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

adapting a computer to provide user input for control of a selection of one of the cells in said sample fluid.