Tecan Trading Ag

Merck + Co., Inc.

Marc Nathan Feiglin

Anne R Kopf-Sill

Joseph Mamone

Michael Benjamin Franklin

Travis Lee

Timothy Francis Lee

Bruce J Richardson

Torleif Ove Bjornson

Gary S Kath

Tiffany Lay

Gregory W King

Howard Gamper

Daniel Hoffmeyer

Kailiang Wang

Glenn A Clarke

S Nicholas Reimitz

Ian Fitzpatrick

Mark Rob

Phillip Duncan

Digital microfluidics system manipulates samples in liquid droplets within disposable cartridges that have bottom layer, top layer, and gap between the bottom and top layers. The system has a base unit with cartridge accommodation sites and a central control unit for controlling selection of individual electrodes of electrode arrays and for providing these electrodes with individual voltage pulses for manipulating liquid droplets within the cartridges by electrowetting. The system further has board accommodation sites located at the cartridge accommodation sites that each can take up a swappable electrode board having an electrode array and electrical board contact elements individually connected to electrodes of the electrode array. Each board accommodation site has electrical base unit contact elements that are connected to the central control unit and that are configured to engage with the electrical board contact elements of a swappable electrode board that is placed at the board accommodation site.

Digital microfluidics system with swappable PCB's

A cartridge has a container with at least one well, protrusions distributed on the container base side, and a flat polymer film having a lower surface and a hydrophobic upper surface kept at a distance (d) to the container base side by the protrusions. The container and the film are reversibly attachable to a liquid droplet manipulation instrument so that the lower surface of the film abuts at least one electrode array of the instrument. The container enables displacement of at least one liquid droplet from a well onto the hydrophobic upper surface of the flat polymer film and above the electrode array. The liquid droplet manipulation instrument has a control unit with a voltage control and an electrode selector for individually selecting each electrode of the electrode array and for providing the selected electrode with a voltage.

Cartridge, kit and method for manipulating liquids having biological samples

A cartridge has a container with at least one well, protrusions distributed on the container base side, and a flat polymer film having a lower surface and a hydrophobic upper surface kept at a distance (d) to the container base side by the protrusions. The container and the film are reversibly attachable to a liquid droplet manipulation instrument so that the lower surface of the film abuts at least one electrode array of the instrument. The container enables displacement of at least one liquid droplet from a well onto the hydrophobic upper surface of the flat polymer film and above the electrode array. The liquid droplet manipulation instrument comprises a control unit with a voltage control and an electrode selector for individually selecting each electrode of the electrode array and for providing the selected electrode with a voltage and thus controlling a guided movement of a liquid droplet on the hydrophobic upper surface of the flat polymer film by electrowetting. Also disclosed are a corresponding kit and method.

A disposable cartridge used in a digital microfluidics system has a bottom layer with first hydrophobic surface, a rigid cover plate with second hydrophobic surface, and a gap there-between. The bottom layer is a flexible film on an uppermost surface of a cartridge accommodation site of a system, attracted to and spread over the uppermost surface by an underpressure. A lower surface of the plate and the flexible bottom layer are sealed to each other. The assembled cartridge is removed from the cartridge accommodation site in one piece and potentially includes samples and processing fluids. The system has a base unit and a cartridge accommodation site with an electrode array of individual electrodes and a central control unit for controlling selection of individual electrodes and for providing these electrodes with individual voltage pulses for manipulating liquid droplets within the gap by electrowetting.

Disposable cartridge for microfluidics systems

In a method of deducing the number of repeat units in a selected short tandem repeat (STR) in a genomic sample, at least a single stranded target DNA generated from a genomic sample comprising a selected STR, an STR probe (P1,P1'), a reference probe (P2), and two blockers (B1,B2) are provided, and at least three differential hybridization experiments are carried out, based on which the number of STR probe oligonucleotides (P1,P1&#x2032;) bound per target DNA strand in each differential hybridization experiment is determined. The method further comprises the step of comparing these numbers of STR probe oligonucleotides (P1,P1&#x2032;) bound per target DNA strand in the differential hybridization experiments for deducing the number of repeat units in the selected STR on the single stranded target DNA strand. Also disclosed are kits for carrying out STR genotyping by differential hybridization.

STR genotyping by differential hybridization

Cartridge has a container with at least one well having a channel from a well opening to a container base side, protrusions on the container base side, and a flat polymer film with a hydrophobic upper surface kept at a distance from the base side by the protrusions. The container and film are reversibly attachable to a liquid droplet manipulation instrument so the lower surface of the film abuts at least one electrode array of the instrument. The container enables displacement of a liquid droplet from a well through the channel onto the hydrophobic upper surface and above the electrode array. The instrument has a control unit with a voltage control and an electrode selector for individually selecting each electrode of the electrode array and for providing the selected electrode with a voltage to controlling guided movement of a liquid droplet by electrowetting. A kit and method are also disclosed.

Cartridge, kit and method for processing biological samples and manipulating liquids having biological samples

A cartridge manipulates samples in liquid droplets with an electrode array when a working film is placed on the array. The cartridge has a body with lower surface and wells to hold samples, each with a bottom opening to release liquid. A piercable bottom structure seals the bottom openings. A working film below the body has a hydrophobic upper surface. A peripheral spacer connects the working film to the body and forms a gap is between the body and surface. A top piercing system located in at least one of the wells has a piston and a piercing element, the piston being movable in the well and the piercing element piercing the piercable bottom structure for releasing a sample from a well into the gap.

Cartridge and system for manipulating samples in liquid droplets

A biological sample processing system () includes a liquid droplet manipulation instrument () with an electrode array () for inducing a movement of a liquid droplet () by electrowetting; a substrate (); and a control unit (). An electrode selector () of the control unit () is configured to individually select and provide each electrode () of the electrode array () with a voltage. The control unit () includes a central processing unit () for individually selecting at least one electrode () and for providing the selected electrode(s) () with an individual voltage pulse. The biological sample processing system () also includes a cartridge () with a container ().

Manipulating the size of liquid droplets in digital microfluidics

Relates to a collection/extraction container () for collecting solid forensic samples () and/or for extracting biological material from these solid forensic samples () and its use. The container () has a top opening () for the insertion of a solid forensic sample (). The container () comprises a basket () and an essentially horizontal intermediate floor () for the retention of the solid forensic sample () during digestion/lysis and extraction, the intermediate floor () being permeable to fluids and dividing the inner chamber () into an upper sample space () and a lower fluid space (). The container according to the invention is characterized in that is comprises an essentially vertical channel (), which is accomplished to allow a pipetting needle () to be inserted through the sample space () and into the fluid space () in that the channel () has a top orifice () that is situated nearby a top opening () of the container () and in that the channel () penetrates the intermediate floor () in a bottom orifice (), wherein the container () also comprises a partition wall () that at least partially surrounds the channel () and that separates the latter from the upper sample space ().

Collection/extraction container for biological material in forensic samples

Liquid droplet manipulation instrument has electrode array for inducing movement of a droplet by electrowetting, substrate supporting the array and control with electrode selector connected to a voltage control. The selector selects each electrode and provides each with a controlled voltage. The control includes central processing unit for providing the selected electrode with an individual voltage pulse which is a drive voltage or a ground voltage or a stop voltage. The control defines a path for movement of a liquid portion of a larger volume that covers more than one electrode by the simultaneous selection of a group of two or more subsequent drive electrodes and to provide each selected drive electrode with a drive voltage pulse along the path. The control simultaneously provides a group of two or more electrodes adjacent to or identical with the pulsed drive electrodes, with a ground or stop voltage pulse.

A biological sample processing system comprises a container for large volume processing, a flat polymer film having a lower surface and a hydrophobic upper surface, which is kept at a distance d to the base side of the container by the protrusions. The distance d defines at least one gap when the container is positioned on the film. A liquid droplet manipulation instrument comprises at least one electrode array for inducing liquid droplet movements; a substrate supporting the at least one electrode array; and a control unit is characterized in that the container and the film are reversibly attached to the liquid droplet manipulation instrument. The system thus enables displacement of at least one liquid droplet from the at least one well through the channel of the container onto the hydrophobic upper surface of the flat polymer film and above the at least one electrode array; wherein the liquid droplet manipulation instrument controls a guided movement of the liquid droplet on the hydrophobic upper surface of the flat polymer film by electrowetting and to process there the biological sample.

System and instrument for processing biological samples and manipulating liquids having biological samples

A digital microfluidics system manipulates samples in liquid droplets within disposable cartridges and has disposable cartridges each with a bottom layer, a top layer and a gap therebetween. A base unit with cartridge accommodation sites and at least one electrode array with electrodes works with a cover plate at the sites and a control unit for controlling selection of the electrodes and for providing them with voltage pulses for manipulating liquid droplets within the cartridges by electrowetting. The cover plate has an electrically conductive material that extends parallel to the array. A selection of disposable cartridges and a method for manipulating samples in liquid droplets that adhere to a hydrophobic surface can be used with the system.

Digital microfluidics system with disposable cartridges

A cartridge () comprises a working film () for manipulating samples in liquid droplets with an electrode array () when the working film () of the cartridge () is placed on said electrode array (). The cartridge () comprises a body (&#x2033;) with a number of wells () configured to hold therein reagents () or samples ('); a flexibly deformable top structure () impermeable to liquids and configured to seal a top side of the wells (); a piercable bottom structure () impermeable to liquids and configured to seal a bottom side of the wells (); a working film () located below a lower surface () of the body (&#x2033;), the working film () being impermeable to liquids and comprising a hydrophobic upper surface (); a peripheral spacer (&#x2033;) located below the lower surface () of the body (&#x2033;) and connecting the working film () to the body (&#x2033;); a gap () between the lower surface () of the body (&#x2033;) and the hydrophobic upper surface () of the working film (), the gap () being defined by the peripheral spacer (&#x2033;); and a number of piercing elements () located below piercable bottom structures () and configured to pierce the piercable bottom structures () for releasing reagents or samples (&#x2032;) from the wells () into the gap (). Also disclosed is a system () with an electrode array () onto which the cartridge () can be placed.

An apparatus suitable for securely gripping and holding a microplate or other containers during robotic de-lidding operations. A microplate placed on the apparatus is held by a vacuum drawn through the base thereof, allowing the lid of the microplate to be removed without movement of the plate. Afterwards, the vacuum can be discontinued and the plate removed from the apparatus.

Growing community of inventors

East Brunswick, NJ, United States of America

Marc Nathan Feiglin