Robert Hess

Massively parallel microfluidics platform for storage and ultra-high-throughput screening

We have developed a novel microarray technology for performing very large numbers of biochemical, chemical and cell-based nanoliter volume synthesis, storage and screening operations in a massively parallel manner. The Living Chip is an array of precisely machined through-holes retaining nanoliters of fluid by capillary action. Sample loading, washing and recovery are operations that can be performed manually or with simple automation. Mixing between co- registered through-holes is achieved by stacking two or more precision aligned arrays and optical assay read-outs are in parallel with a CCD imaging system. An automated picker system transfers hits into lower density microtiter plates for further analysis. We will present result demonstrating massively parallel implementation of both homogeneous and inhomogeneous fluidic and cell-based assay systems and applications of the chip for drug compound library storage and management.

Antibody Library Screening in Through-Hole Microarrays

Through application of recombinant DNA technology monoclonal human antibody libraries of over 109 antibodies are stored as plasmids in bacterial (E. coli) colonies. We have developed ultra high throughput methods suitable for screening these libraries after only one round of panning in precisely constructed, high density arrays of micro-channels, or bottomless wells.