Device and method for pressure-driven plug transport and reaction

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10105703-B2
Application number	US-201815861225-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 3, 2018
Priority date	May 9, 2002
Publication date	Oct 23, 2018
Grant date	Oct 23, 2018

Abstract

The present invention provides microfabricated substrates and methods of conducting reactions within these substrates. The reactions occur in plugs transported in the flow of a carrier-fluid.

First claim

We claim:

1. A method comprising:
flowing a first plug fluid stream in a first microchannel toward a junction, the first plug fluid stream comprising an enzyme;
flowing a second plug fluid stream in a second microchannel toward the junction, the second plug fluid stream comprising a reactant, wherein the first and second plug fluid streams meet at a first junction such that the enzyme and the reactant co-flow with each other downstream of the first junction toward a second junction; and
flowing a carrier fluid that is immiscible with the first and second plug fluid streams to the second junction; and
forming a plurality of plugs at the second junction, each of the plurality of plugs being separated by the carrier fluid and at least one of the plurality of plugs comprising the enzyme and the reactant.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the carrier fluid is an oil.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the enzyme and reactant within the at least one plug allow for a reaction to occur.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the reaction is an autocatalytic reaction.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the autocatalytic reaction is a polymerase-chain reaction (PCR).

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the reactant comprises at least one of a synthetic molecule and a biological molecule.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the biological molecule is DNA or RNA.

8. The method of claim 6 , wherein the biological molecule is a protein.

9. The method of claim 6 , wherein the biological molecule is secreted from a cell.

10. The method of claim 6 , wherein the at least one plug comprises a single biological molecule.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the first and second plug fluids comprises a reagent.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the first and second plug fluids comprises a solvent.

Assignees

• Univ Chicago

Inventors

• Ismagilov Rustem F
• Tice Joshua David
• Song Baca Helen
• Roach Lewis Spencer

Classifications

• B01L2200/0668

  Trapping microscopic beads · CPC title

• B01J2219/00837

  comprising coatings other than catalytically active coatings · CPC title

• B01J2219/00599

  Solution-phase processes · CPC title

• Y10T436/118339

  with formation of a segmented stream · CPC title

• B01L2400/0487

  fluid pressure, pneumatics · CPC title