Revolutionary system can sensitively, rapidly and economically detect analytes in complex fluids such as serum without the need for radio-, enzymatic or fluorescent labels
Acoustic technology granted US patent Revolutionary system can sensitively, rapidly and economically detect analytes in complex fluids such as serum without the need for the radio-, enzymatic or fluorescent labels used currently.
Akubio, an acoustic detection technology company, reports that its patent for its core rupture event scanning (Revs) technology for the detection and separation of molecules has been granted by the US patent office.
The patent, number USP 6589727, was granted on 8 July 2003.
Commenting on the patent, John Pritchard, CEO, said: "Revs technology has significant advantages over existing technologies: it can sensitively, rapidly and economically detect analytes in complex fluids such as serum without the need for the radio-, enzymatic or fluorescent labels used currently.
"The granting of our first patent puts Akubio in a strong position to commercialise the technology for applications in the life science research and in vitro diagnostic markets".
Revs is one of two revolutionary acoustic technologies being developed by Akubio.
It can be used to size, separate and detect ligands.
The technique works by effectively shaking the ligand, such as a virus particle, off a vibrating surface, at present a quartz resonator.
The acoustic energy, or sound, generated when interactions between the ligand and its receptor are broken is then detected by using the resonator as a very sensitive microphone.
More strongly attached ligands detach at larger amplitudes of oscillation, so that separation and detection are performed in the same experiment.
The magnitude of acoustic energy (ie the loudness of the sound) is proportional to the number of ligands on the surface, making the technique fully quantitative.
Revs has the potential to be used in a wide range of applications including human and veterinary diagnostics, drug discovery, life sciences research, bioterrorism, food testing and environmental monitoring and in process monitoring of production processes.
The core component used for detection (a quartz resonator) is employed in many electronic devices, eg watches and computers, and is mass-produced in the billions.
