Customized oligonucleotide microchips that convert multiple genetic information to simple patterns, are portable and reusable

A diagnostic assay for the presence of a mutation in a gene in a sample said assay comprising:

• (d) designing a customized reusable microchip biosensor comprising at least one oligonucleotide that hybridizes to a gene having the mutation, said designing producing an overall pattern that is detectable in the presence of said hybridization of the mutation;
• (e) contacting the sample to the customized microchip biosensor under conditions that allow hybridization of the gene sequence that is a mutation to oligonucleotides on the microchip;
• and
• (f)determining whether hybridization occurs by analyzing the microchip pattern from which presence of the mutation in the gene is determined.

A method using non-equilibrium melting curves to detect mismatches between a nitrogen base sequence on a microchip and a nitrogen base sequence to be tested, said method comprising:

• (g) generating the non-equilibrium melting curves by simultaneously monitoring hybridization between the nitrogen base sequence that matches or mismatches with sequences on the microchip at a series of temperatures;
• (h) selecting the temperature at which maximum discrimination occurs between the match and the mismatch;
• and
• (i) determining the degree of mismatch of the nitrogen base sequence to be tested at the selected temperature.

A customized oligonucleotide microchip for the detection of a betaglobin mutation, said microchip containing seven oligonucleotides having the following nitrogen base sequences:

• 8 Identifier Sequences SEQ ID NO:
• IVS (N) CCTGGGCAGGTTGGTATCA;
• 48 IVS I/2 T/A CCTGGGCAGGaTGGTATCA;
• 49 IVS I/1 G/A CCTGGGCAGaTTGGTATCA;
• 50 IVS I/6 T/C CCTGGGCAGGTTGcTATCA;
• 51 IVS 1/5 G/T CCTGGGCAGGTTGtTATCA;
• 52 CD26 (N) GTTGGTGGTGAGGCCCTGG;
• 53 CD26 G/A GTTGGTGGTaAGGCCCTGG 54.

A method for designing a reusable genetic microchip to answer a specific question about a test sample, said answer provided by detection of hybridization patterns of the nitrogen base sequences of nucleic or ribonucleic acids of molecules present in the sample, on the microchip as a whole, said method comprising:

• (a) determining the specific question;
• and
• (b) designing the microchip so that hybridization of nucleic acids present in the sample provides a pattern that when detected as a whole provides an answer to the question;
• and
• (c) detecting the pattern.