RAPID, AUTOMATED DETECTION SYSTEM FOR PCR PRODUCTS

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There is presently a great deal of interest in defecting specific genetic mutations or variants that could provide information about an individual's predisposition to a wide variety of diseases, predict an individual's sensitivity to specific chemicals or drugs, or be used as prognostic indicators for the treatment of patients with diseases such as cancer. Despite the importance of monitoring such genetic variants, present research laboratory techniques are not suitable for routine clinical use, and there is a great need for new, automated, high-throughput diagnostic approaches. We propose to address this problem by developing automated instrumentation for the quantitative detection of specific DNA products generated from DNA or RNA targets by polymerase chain reaction techniques. This computer-controlled instrumentation will be capable of delivering samples and reagents to standard 96-well microplates, maintaining appropriate incubation temperatures for specific hybridization reactions, and performing washing and detection procedures. The proposed instrument will be able to quickly and efficiently process many DNA samples, and the final planned technology will be able to simultaneously screen multiple genes from a single DNA sample.