Microfluidic Device Amplifies DNA in Less than Five Minutes
ROCHESTER, N.Y., March 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Thermal Gradient, Inc., a
Pittsford, NY, company, announced today that it has successfully developed a
30-cycle PCR device that can amplify DNA in just 4.4 minutes, far faster than
anything available in the marketplace.
According to Dr. Joel Grover, CEO of Thermal Gradient, the disposable,
microfluidic thermal cycling device "demonstrates everything we had hoped for
with our first-generation technology, and we are now seeking strategic
partners to help develop products based on it."
PCR (polymerase chain reaction) is the most common method of performing
DNA tests. It involves amplifying or making a huge number of copies of
specific DNA sequences and usually takes an hour or more to carry out.
Thermal Gradient announced last September that it had shown the
feasibility of amplifying DNA with its device and has steadily improved its
performance since then.
"We are now able to run reactions three times faster than we could just a
few months ago," Dr. Grover said, "and we are working on second-generation
technology for the Department of Homeland Security. DHS hopes to use the
extraordinary speed of our device to help with its mission."
Dr. Grover explained that PCR today is run in specialized instruments that
perform just one or a few kinds of tests at a time, and only in batches.
"Until now," he said, "no one has been able to make a PCR instrument that
is automated and flexible, like an immunodiagnostic or clinical chemistry
instrument, one that allows a clinician to select and run tests on samples
brought to the instrument on a random basis. The short cycle time of our
technology makes it possible to do that. It brings the concept of lean
thinking to the process of DNA testing."
Dr. Grover added that because the device is so easy to use, it has
advantages in point-of-care and point-of-use applications.
"A clinician would simply install our chip into a device in which the
sample would be pumped through it," he said. "The PCR protocol is built into
the chip. It's easy to imagine simple, hand-held testers based on it for use
in the emergency room or a doctor's office. We envision running DNA tests in
minutes while the patient is being examined for infections like HIV,
Hepatitis, methicillin-resistant staphylococcus or the multiple causes of
sepsis. It's also easy to envision similar kinds of testers for use in
forensics and food and water testing."
The company's first prototype device consists of multiple layers of
silicon and other materials and is roughly half the size of a fingernail. It
was fabricated at the Infotonics Technology Center in Canandaigua, NY. All
testing has been performed at the Functional Genomics Center of the University
of Rochester, with the assistance of Prof. Andrew Brooks of Rutgers
University. The Trillium Group has backed the company since its inception in
2004.
About Thermal Gradient
Thermal Gradient, Inc. is a privately funded biotechnology company based
in Pittsford, NY. The company plans to leverage its patented technology in
accelerated thermal cycling through licensing and internally developing
devices for clinical diagnostics, general biotechnology, bio-defense, and
other related industries. For more information, visit
http://www.thermalgradient.com
SOURCE Thermal Gradient, Inc.
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Related links:
http://www.thermalgradient.com
CONTACT:
Julie Napieralski of Martino Flynn LLC for
Thermal Gradient, Inc., +1-585-421-0100, or
jnapieralski@martinoflynn.com
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