Microfluidic enzyme assays and
sub-microliter sample preparation for DNA sequencing
Andrew Hadd, Ph.D.
Molecular Dynamics
Palo Alto, California
Wednesday, November 10, 1999
3:00 p.m.—Pacific Forum
Microchips have been
recently developed for performing a wide-range of analytical measurements and represent
the ability to miniaturize current "bench-top" experiments with increased speed,
automation, and volumetric reduction of sample and waste. Within the channel network of a
glass microchip, cross intersections and mixing tees are used for valving and dispensing
picoliter volumes with high volumetric reproducibility (0.3% RSD). I will describe the
development of an automated, microchip assay for ß-galactosidase using a fluorogenic
substrate. Another critical limitation of microfabricated devices is the interface of
macro-prepared samples with the microchip environment. Towards improving the interface and
compatibility of samples with microchip analysis, a sub-microliter DNA sequencing device
has been developed for both capillary array electrophoresis and microchip analysis. To
meet the cost-reduction demands of sample preparation for both capillary array
electrophoresis and microchip-based instruments, a 16-channel system was developed for 500
nL dye-primer and dye-terminator DNA sequencing reactions. The analysis of
sub-microliter
DNA sequencing samples by this 16-channel microchip device will also be presented.
Microchips have been
recently developed for performing a wide-range of analytical measurements and represent
the ability to miniaturize current "bench-top" experiments with increased speed,
automation, and volumetric reduction of sample and waste. Within the channel network of a
glass microchip, cross intersections and mixing tees are used for valving and dispensing
picoliter volumes with high volumetric reproducibility (0.3% RSD). I will describe the
development of an automated, microchip assay for ß-galactosidase using a fluorogenic
substrate. Another critical limitation of microfabricated devices is the interface of
macro-prepared samples with the microchip environment. Towards improving the interface and
compatibility of samples with microchip analysis, a sub-microliter DNA sequencing device
has been developed for both capillary array electrophoresis and microchip analysis. To
meet the cost-reduction demands of sample preparation for both capillary array
electrophoresis and microchip-based instruments, a 16-channel system was developed for 500
nL dye-primer and dye-terminator DNA sequencing reactions. The analysis of
sub-microliter
DNA sequencing samples by this 16-channel microchip device will also be presented.