System including functionally separated regions in electrophoretic system

• Main Authors: SHELDON EDWARD L, ACKLEY DONALD E, KRIHAK MICHAEL K
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 20.11.2001
• Edition: 7
• Subjects: APPARATUS THEREFOR; BASIC ELECTRIC ELEMENTS; BEER; BIOCHEMISTRY; BLASTING; CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL LABORATORY APPARATUS FOR GENERAL USE; CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROCESSES, e.g. CATALYSIS OR COLLOIDCHEMISTRY; CHEMISTRY; COMBINATORIAL CHEMISTRY; COMPOSITIONS OR TEST PAPERS THEREFOR; CONDITION-RESPONSIVE CONTROL IN MICROBIOLOGICAL ORENZYMOLOGICAL PROCESSES; DERIVATIVES THEREOF; ELECTRIC SOLID STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; ELECTRICITY; ENZYMOLOGY; GENERAL METHODS OF ORGANIC CHEMISTRY; HEATING; INFORMATION STORAGE; INVESTIGATING OR ANALYSING MATERIALS BY DETERMINING THEIRCHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROPERTIES; LIBRARIES, e.g. CHEMICAL LIBRARIES, IN SILICOLIBRARIES; LIGHTING; MANUFACTURE OR TREATMENT OF NANOSTRUCTURES; MEASUREMENT OR ANALYSIS OF NANOSTRUCTURES; MEASURING; MEASURING OR TESTING PROCESSES INVOLVING ENZYMES, NUCLEICACIDS OR MICROORGANISMS; MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; METALLURGY; MICROBIOLOGY; MUTATION OR GENETIC ENGINEERING; NANOTECHNOLOGY; NUCLEIC ACIDS; NUCLEOSIDES; NUCLEOTIDES; ORGANIC CHEMISTRY; PEPTIDES; PERFORMING OPERATIONS; PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL; PHYSICS; POSITIVE DISPLACEMENT MACHINES FOR LIQUIDS; PROCESSES OF PREPARING SUCH COMPOSITIONS; PUMPS; PUMPS FOR LIQUIDS OR ELASTIC FLUIDS; SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES; SPECIFIC USES OR APPLICATIONS OF NANOSTRUCTURES; SPIRITS; STATIC STORES; SUGARS; TESTING; THEIR RELEVANT APPARATUS; TRANSPORTING; VINEGAR; WEAPONS; WINE

Methods, apparatus, and applications for use of a stacked, reconfigurable system for electrophoretic transport are provided. In one embodiment, a system having a first chamber including at least a bottom support and an intermediate support, and a second chamber, said second chamber including a bottom support and a top member, the first and second chambers being coupled through a via. Electrophoretic, and optional electro-osmotic and thermal, transport is effected. In another aspect of this invention, three or more chambers are coupled by an electrophoretic buss. The electrophoretic buss includes driving electrodes and is adapted to receive fluid containing materials for transport. The chambers are coupled to the electrophoretic buss and serve as a tap from the buss for delivery of charged materials. In one embodiment, certain functions are performed in different chambers. For example, the first chamber may receive the sample and perform sample processing functions, the second chamber may perform amplification procedures, yet a third chamber may perform hybridization or other assays, and yet another chamber may perform immunoassays. By separating various functions to different chambers, speed and sensitivity may be improved. In yet another aspect of this invention, analysis from a earlier stage may be utilized in a subsequent stage to reconfigure the system for optimum use. In one application, analysis at a first level is utilized to determine an action at a second level, such as the synthesis of a compound. The synthesized compound in response to a biohazard may comprise vaccine or antidote.