Claims
- 1. An optical bio-disc, comprising:
a substantially circular substrate having a center and an outer edge; an active layer associated with the substrate; a target zone disposed between the center and the outer edge; and at least one strand of DNA having an affinity for the active layer such that the DNA is immobilized on the active layer in the target zone, wherein the active layer is formulated to immobilize a pellet formed by an enzyme reaction.
- 2. The optical bio-disc according to claim 1 wherein the active layer comprises nitrocellulose.
- 3. The optical bio-disc according to claim 1 wherein the substrate includes encoded information associated therewith, the encoded information being readable by a disc drive assembly to control rotation of the bio-disc.
- 4. The optical bio-disc according to claim 1 further comprising a reflective layer formed on a surface of the substrate.
- 5. The optical bio-disc according to claim 1 further comprising an enzyme, wherein the enzyme, when exposed to an enzyme substrate, produces a signal detectable by an incident beam of electromagnetic radiation.
- 6. The optical bio-disc according to claim 1 further comprising a flow channel in fluid communication with the target zone and an input site in fluid communication with the flow channel.
- 7. A method of testing for the presence of a target-nucleic acid in a test sample, said method comprising the steps of:
providing a bio-disc, the bio-disc comprising a substantially circular substrate having a center and an outer edge, an active layer associated with the substrate, a target zone disposed between the center and the outer edge, at least one strand of capture-DNA having an affinity for the active layer such that the capture-DNA is immobilized on the active layer in the target zone, the capture-DNA and the target-nucleic acid having at least some complementary sequence; depositing the test sample on the target zone; allowing any target-nucleic acid present in the test sample to hybridize with the capture-DNA; providing a plurality of enzyme molecules; binding the enzyme molecules to the target-nucleic acid such that enzyme molecules bound to the target-nucleic are immobilized within the target zone; washing the target zone to remove any unbound enzyme molecules; depositing onto the target zone at least one enzyme substrate that reacts with the enzyme molecules to produce at least one detectable signal; and detecting any signal in the target zone to thereby determine whether target-nucleic acid is present in the test sample.
- 8. The method of claim 7, further comprising the step of amplifying the test sample with at least one DNA primer set specific to the target-nucleic acid, to thereby amplify any target-nucleic acid present in the test sample.
- 9. The method of claim 8, wherein the DNA primer is labeled with an affinity agent.
- 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the affinity agent is biotin.
- 11. The method of claim 9, wherein the enzyme molecules are conjugated with a binding agent that interacts with the affinity agent.
- 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the binding agent is selected from the group consisting of streptavidin and neutravidin.
- 13. The method of claim 7, wherein the enzyme is horseradish peroxidase.
- 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the enzyme substrate is selected from the group consisting of 3,3′,5,5′-tetramethylbenzidine (TMB), 4-chloronaphthol/3,3′-diaminobenzidine, tetrahydrochloride (CN/DAB), 4-chloro-1-napthol (4-CN), 3-amino-9-ethyl carbazol (AEC), and 3,3′-diaminobenzidine tetrahydrochloride (DAB).
- 15. The method of claim 7, wherein the detectable signal is a precipitate, which adheres to the active layer.
- 16. The method of claim 7, further comprising the steps of:
providing a signal DNA, wherein the signal DNA has a portion of sequence complementary to the target-nucleic acid but not to the capture-DNA; binding the enzyme molecules to the signal DNA; and hybridizing the signal DNA to the target-nucleic acid, such that the enzyme molecules are bound to the target-nucleic acids via the signal DNA.
- 17. A method of making an optical bio-disc, said method comprising the steps of:
providing a substrate having a center and an outer edge; encoding information on an information layer associated with the substrate, the encoded information being readable by a disc drive assembly to control rotation of the disc; forming a target zone on the substrate between the center and the outer edge; applying an active layer in the target zone, wherein the active layer is formulated to immobilize a precipitate formed by an enzyme reaction; and depositing within the target zone, a plurality of strands of capture-DNA, at least some of the capture-DNA attaching to the active layer to thereby become immobilized within the target zone.
- 18. The method of claim 17, further comprising the step of forming a flow channel in fluid communication with said target zone.
- 19. The method of claim 18, further comprising the step of forming a chamber in fluid communication with the flow channel, the chamber having an input port.
- 20. The method of claim 19, further comprising the step of providing a pad on which an enzyme has been dried, wherein the pad is disposed with the chamber.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Applications, Serial No. 60/292,110, filed May 18, 2001, and No. 60/313,917, filed Aug. 21, 2001, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties.
Provisional Applications (2)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
|
60292110 |
May 2001 |
US |
|
60313917 |
Aug 2001 |
US |