Three-stage thermal convection apparatus and uses thereof
AssigneeAhram Biosystems, Inc.
InventorHyun Jin Hwang
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Disclosed is a multi-stage thermal convection apparatus and uses thereof. In one embodiment, the invention features a three-stage thermal convection apparatus that includes a temperature shaping element for assisting a thermal convection mediated Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). The invention has a wide variety of applications including amplifying nucleic acid without cumbersome and expensive hardware associated with many prior devices. In a typical embodiment, the apparatus can fit in the palm of a user's hand for use as a portable, simple to operate, and low cost PCR amplification device.
Claims55
An apparatus adapted to perform thermal convection PCR comprising:
- (a) a first heat source for heating or cooling a channel and comprising a top surface and a bottom surface, the channel being adapted to receive a reaction vessel for performing PCR,
- (b) a second heat source for heating or cooling the channel and comprising a top surface and a bottom surface, the bottom surface facing the top surface of the first heat source,
- (c) a third heat source for heating or cooling the channel and comprising a top surface and a bottom surface, the bottom surface facing the top surface of the second heat source, wherein the channel is defined by a bottom end contacting the first heat source and a through hole contiguous with the top surface of the third heat source, and further wherein center points between the bottom end and the through hole form a channel axis about which the channel is disposed,
- (d) at least one temperature shaping element such as at least one protrusion in at least one of the first, second and third heat sources, the protrusion being disposed about the channel axis and extending toward an adjacent heat source or away from the top or bottom surface of the heat source that comprises the protrusion;
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- (e) a receptor hole adapted to receive the channel within the first heat source.
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A method for performing a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) by thermal convection, the method comprising at least one and preferably all of the following steps:
- (a) maintaining a first heat source comprising a receptor hole at a temperature range suitable for denaturing a double-stranded nucleic acid molecule and forming a single-stranded template,
- (b) maintaining a third heat source at a temperature range suitable for annealing at least one oligonucleotide primer to the single-stranded template,
- (c) maintaining a second heat source at a temperature suitable for supporting polymerization of the primer along the single-stranded template;
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- (d) producing thermal convection between the receptor hole and the third heat source under conditions sufficient to produce the primer extension product,
- wherein a channel that is adapted to receive a reaction vessel for performing the PCR is defined by a bottom end of the receptor hole contacting the first heat source and a through hole contiguous with the top surface of the third heat source, and further wherein center points between the bottom end of the receptor hole and the through hole form a channel axis about which the channel is disposed;
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- wherein the method further comprising a step of providing at least one protrusion in at least one of the first, second and third heat sources, the protrusion being disposed about the channel axis and extending toward an adjacent heat source or away from the top or bottom surface of the heat source that comprises the protrusion.
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Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.