Sorting, amplification, detection, and identification of nucleic acid subsequences in a complex mixture

1. An apparatus for identifying the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample wherein the organisms include nucleic acids, comprising:

a microfluidic flow channel,

an emulsifier source that directs an emulsifier into said microfluidic flow channel,

a droplet generator that directs the sample into said emulsifier and creates discrete droplets from the sample wherein said droplets constitute sub-nanoliter volume reactors containing the organisms;

a lysis device for performing lysis of the organisms to release the nucleic acids;

an amplifier for amplifying the nucleic acids;

a fractionater that releases the nucleic acids from said droplets; and

a parallel analyzer for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in the sample.

2. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 1 wherein said droplet generator comprises a mechanical orifice and the sample is forced through said mechanical orifice into said emulsifier in said microfluidic flow channel creating said discrete droplets and wherein said discrete droplets have emulsified shells.

3. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 1 wherein said lysis device comprises an optical window.

4. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 1 wherein said lysis device comprises a laser for directing electromagnetic radiation through an optical window.

5. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 1 wherein said lysis device comprises an ultrasound-generating piezoelectric actuator.

6. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 1 wherein said lysis device comprises a wire-based ultrasound-generator inside the microchannel.

7. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 1 wherein said lysis device comprises a resistive, conductive, or radiative heater that causes lysis through hyperthermia of the target organism.

8. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 1 wherein said amplifier comprises a thermocycler.

9. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 1 wherein said parallel analyzer comprises an electrophoresis system that includes capillary electrophoresis lanes.

10. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 1 wherein said parallel analyzer comprises a capillary electrophoresis system.

11. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 1 wherein said parallel analyzer comprises a genomic analyzer.

12. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 1 wherein said parallel analyzer comprises a direct sequencer.

13. An apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample wherein the organisms include nucleic acids, comprising:

a chip,

a microfluidic flow channel in said chip,

an emulsifier source directing an emulsifier into said microfluidic flow channel,

a droplet generator in said microfluidic flow channel that directs the sample into said emulsifier and creates discrete droplets from the sample wherein said droplets constitute sub-nanoliter volume reactors containing the organisms;

a lysis device in said microfluidic flow channel for performing lysis of the organisms to release the nucleic acids;

an amplifier in said microfluidic flow channel for amplifying the nucleic acids;

a fractionater in said microfluidic flow channel that releases the nucleic acids from said droplets; and

a parallel analyzer connected to said microfluidic flow channel for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in the sample.

14. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 13 wherein said droplet generator comprises a mechanical orifice and the sample is forced through said mechanical orifice into said emulsifier in said microfluidic flow channel creating said discrete droplets and wherein said discrete droplets have emulsified shells.

15. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 13 wherein said lysis device comprises an optical window.

16. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 13 wherein said lysis device comprises a laser for directing electromagnetic radiation through an optical window.

17. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 13 wherein said lysis device comprises an ultrasound-generating piezoelectric actuator.

18. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 13 wherein said amplifier comprises a thermocycler.

19. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 13 wherein said parallel analyzer comprises an electrophoresis system.

20. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 13 wherein said parallel analyzer comprises a capillary electrophoresis system that includes capillary electrophoresis lanes.

21. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 13 wherein said parallel analyzer comprises a genomic analyzer.

22. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 13 wherein said parallel analyzer comprises a direct sequencer.

23. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 13 including an optical detector connected to said microfluidic flow channel for analysis of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in the sample.

24. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 13 wherein said chip comprises a multiplicity of wafers produced by a wet etch in glass or borosilicate and wherein said wafers are then aligned and bonded together to produce bonded wafers.

25. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 24 wherein said bonded wafers are then cut by a diamond saw to produce said chip.

26. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 24 including a borosilicate or glass cover layer positioned over said microfluidic flow channel wherein said chip comprises a multiplicity of wafers produced by a photolithography process utilizing a front and backside Deep Reactive Ion Etch (DRIE) process where the front side of a Si wafer contains said microfluidic channel and the back side etch creates the fluid vias to connect to said microfluidic channel and said front side of said Si wafer is then sealed by anodic bonding of said borosilicate or glass cover layer to said front side of said Si wafer.

27. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 13 wherein said chip comprises a multiplicity of wafers produced by a soft lithography process where SU-8 photoresist is patterned into a positive-relief on a channel architecture using a standard photolithography process and said patterned structure becomes a mold for the addition of liquid polydimethylsiloxane which is flowed over the SU-8 and cured.

28. The apparatus for identifying all of the known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample of claim 27 wherein said cured polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) is then pulled from the mold, a glass coverslip is spin coated with a small layer of polydimethylsiloxane and cured, layers of glass plus PDMS with channels are brought together and cured such that the polydimethylsiloxane forms a complete seal around the channel geometry and fluidic ports are cored out of the polymeric polydimethylsiloxane.