Hitachi, Ltd.

Tamotu Simada

Keiichi Nagai

Hideki Kambara

Tomoaki Sumitani

Jirou Tokita

Ryusei Nakano

Ken'ichi Watanabe

Kenichi Watanabe

Hideyuki Horiuchi

Tetsuo Nishikawa

Yoshinori Harada

Jiro Tokita

Masamoto Takatsuji

Chiaki Shimbo

A multicolor fluorescence detection type electrophoresis apparatus comprises an electrophoretic device having migration lanes in which fragment groups specifically labeled by fluorophores of different light emission peak wavelengths are mixed, added, and migrated. It identifies and detects the fragment groups. It uses laser beams of different wavelengths for exciting the fluorophores in the migration lanes. The laser beams are irradiated to separate positions on the migration lanes for detection of a few kinds of fluorophores at irradiation positions. For the purpose, multicolor optical filters are arranged near the irradiation positions to identify and detect lights emitted from the fluorophores excited by wavelength at every irradiation position.

Fluorescence detection type electrophoresis apparatus

In the instrument for determination of the base sequence of the present invention, the ionic strength of a buffer solution in a gel is made lower at a detection part than in a region from the detection part towards a negative electrode. Therefore, at the detection part, the electric field intensity can be increased, resulting in a higher migration speed, and hence the electrophoretic pattern can be extended, so that the distance between two adjacent electrophoretic bands can be elongated. Consequently, according to the present invention, the slit width can be narrowed relatively to the electrophoretic pattern without actually narrowing the slit width, and the resolving power can be enhanced without lowering the detection sensitivity.

Instrument for determination of the base sequence of nucleic acid

An instrument for determination of the base sequence of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) which is designed to dectect DNA fragments in course of gel electrophoresis in real time to determine the base sequence of DNA, and comprises a gel electrophoretic panel part wherein DNA fragments labeled with a radioisotope are supplied to four places in a gel for four kinds of complementary strand synthesis reaction systems, respectively, and subjected to electrophoresis to form an electrophoretic pattern of the DNA fragments, and a detection part for detecting the electrophoretic pattern of the DNA fragments provided at a predetermined position in said gel electrophoretic panel part so as to have a position resolving power in a direction perpendicular to the direction of electrophoretic migration of the DNA fragments, and which instrument has a means for making the temperature of the gel in the vicinity of the detection part for detecting the electrophoretic pattern of the DNA fragments higher than that on the DNA fragment supply part side. By virtue of the provision of said means, the distance between two adjacent DNA bands similar to each other in molecular weight can be elongated, the resolving power for DNA bands can be improved, and the base sequence of nucleic acid can be determined with high precision.

Instrument for determination of the base sequence of DNA

An electrophoretic apparatus according to this invention comprises electrophoretic paths along which sample fragments labeled with phosphor migrate; electrodes disposed at both the ends of said electrophoretic paths; a driving power source for giving said sample fragments on the electrophoretic paths electrophoretic force by applying an electric potential difference between said electrodes; an excitation light source projecting an excitation light to said sample fragments on said electrophoretic paths; and means for detecting fluorescence emitted by the phosphor existing in the sample fragments and excited by the excitation light. Said an excitation light source is so disposed that the excitation light is projected to said sample fragments on said electrophoretic paths in a direction substantially parallel to a plane containing said electrophoretic paths.

Fluorescence detection type electrophoretic apparatus

An improved electrophoresis apparatus for nucleic acid fragments in which nucleic acid fragments are separated in the order of their molecular weight in an electrophoresis cell using an electrophoretic gel for determining the base sequence of a nucleic acid, the improvement comprising a nucleic acid fragment specimen supply section for supplying the nucleic acid fragments to the electrophoresis cell, disposed thereover a molecular sieving membrane having a predetermined degree of molecular permeability for separating to remove those high molecular weight ingredients in the nucleic acid fragment specimen other than the fragments intended to be analyzed electrophoretically.

Electrophoresis apparatus for nucleic acid fragments

A surgical equipment for transmitting surgical output power such as laser beam from a hand piece is provided with a pressure sensing element of which resistance changes with the force externally applied to the hand piece so that the pressure sensing element senses an operator holding the hand piece.

Growing community of inventors

Akishima, Japan

Tamotu Simada