Taiwanese Team Developing Single-Molecule Real-Time Optical Sequencing Tech Registers for X-Prize
- From: as <assidd73@xxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 15 Dec 2009 16:41:03 -0800 (PST)
Source: GenomeWeb
http://www.genomewe b.com/sequencing /taiwanese- team-developing-
single-molecule- real-time- optical-sequenci ng-tech-regi? hq_e=el&hq_
m=555358& hq_l=7&hq_ v=203d2b54c8
Taiwanese Team Developing Single-Molecule Real-Time Optical
Sequencing Tech Registers for X-Prize
November 17, 2009
By Julia Karow <http://www.genomewe b.com/sequencing /jkarow@genomewe
b.com>
*A team of researchers in Taiwan *that is working on a single-
molecule
real-time optoelectronics- based sequencing technology has recently
entered the competition for the Archon X Prize for Genomics, the X
Prize
Foundation said this week.
The group, which started in 2007 and calls itself "Cracker," is based
at
the Industrial Technology Research Institute in Hsinchu, Taiwan. ITRI
provided initial funding for its research.
According to its website, the team is getting ready to spin off its
technology and staff into a privately held company. It is currently
"passing through initial development milestones" and plans to "report
publicly about them in the near future."
The researchers aim to sequence single DNA molecules in real time
using
a fluorescence- based sequencing-by- synthesis method.
According to the website, their patent-pending method uses arrays of
up
to a million nanowells on a composite "sTOP" chip — short for
"sequencing on top of a photodiode" — that consists of three layers:
a
light-emitting tier in which the nanowells are embedded, a filtering
tier, and a photo-sensing tier.
Strongly reminiscent of Pacific Biosciences' zero-mode waveguides,
the
observation volume within the nanowells is confined, allowing the
researchers to record single fluorescent tags. "One fluorescent
molecule
can be detected when present locally in the reactive volume, and be
singled out from an environment highly concentrated in fluorophores,
"
according to the website.
As light of a particular wavelength emanates from the sides of a
nanowell, fluorescent tags in the well are excited and emit light,
which
passes through the filter tier and is converted into an electric
signal
by a photodiode at the bottom.
The Cracker team, which registered for the X Prize on Oct. 1, is the
eighth team to enter the competition, joining VisiGen Biotechnologies
(now part of Life Technologies) , Roche's 454 Life Sciences, the
Foundation for Applied Molecular Evolution, Reveo, Base4 Innovation,
the
Personal Genome X-team, and ZS Genetics.
The winner will be the first team to sequence 100 human genomes to
certain specifications within 10 days for less than $10,000 per
genome.
.
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