Pen-Tung Sah Institute of Micro-Nano Science and Technology, Xiamen University, Xiamen 361005, PR China.
Biosens Bioelectron. 2012 Oct-Dec;38(1):342-7. doi: 10.1016/j.bios.2012.06.022. Epub 2012 Jun 23.
Microarray technology is a useful tool for nucleic acid detection and has been widely used in biology and related research fields. However, the procedure is labor intensive and time consuming. Microfluidic chip-based microarrays save time with better performance, but the low spot density and probe number limit its applications. To develop high performance microarrays with high spot density within a microchannel, a method is reported here for preparing microarrays in a capillary by generating probe droplet arrays. The probes in droplets are immobilized onto the inner wall of the capillary to form a one-dimensional probe array, and then a sample solution is introduced to hybridize with the probe array. The effect of the capillary's inner diameter was evaluated to realize a high-density probe array. The processes of array generation and probe immobilization were studied to avoid possible cross contamination. The background from probe immobilization during the array generation and incubation was quantified to assure sensitivity. Multiple sample detection was also demonstrated within one capillary. The capillary based microarray assay had high spot density, easy fabrication, fast detection, high sensitivity and multiple sample capacity.
微阵列技术是一种用于核酸检测的有用工具，已广泛应用于生物学及相关研究领域。然而，该过程劳动强度大且耗时。基于微流控芯片的微阵列具有更好的性能，可节省时间，但点密度和探针数量低限制了其应用。为了在微通道内开发具有高密度点的高性能微阵列，本研究报告了一种通过生成探针液滴阵列在毛细管中制备微阵列的方法。将液滴中的探针固定到毛细管的内壁上，形成一维探针阵列，然后引入样品溶液与探针阵列进行杂交。评估了毛细管内径的效果，以实现高密度探针阵列。研究了阵列生成和探针固定过程，以避免可能的交叉污染。对在阵列生成和孵育过程中探针固定产生的背景进行了量化，以确保灵敏度。还在一个毛细管内进行了多个样本的检测。基于毛细管的微阵列分析具有高密度点、易于制造、快速检测、高灵敏度和多样本容量的特点。
