Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 9, 2026
10:00
An Ultrahigh-throughput Microfluidic Platform for Single-cell Genome Sequencing
Published on: May 23, 2018
Microfabricated bioprocessor for integrated nanoliter-scale Sanger DNA sequencing
Robert G Blazej1, Palani Kumaresan, Richard A Mathies
1University of California, San Francisco/University of California, Berkeley, Joint Bioengineering Graduate Group, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
Summary
This study presents a miniaturized DNA sequencer integrating Sanger sequencing steps on a microfabricated chip. The lab-on-a-chip device achieves high accuracy and read lengths suitable for complex genome sequencing.
Area of Science:
- Biotechnology
- Genomics
- Analytical Chemistry
Background:
- Sanger sequencing is a foundational method in genomics.
- Miniaturization of DNA sequencing technologies is crucial for cost and efficiency improvements.
- Integrating multiple laboratory processes onto a single chip (lab-on-a-chip) offers significant advantages.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and evaluate an efficient, nanoliter-scale microfabricated bioprocessor for complete Sanger sequencing.
- To demonstrate the feasibility of integrating thermal cycling, purification, and capillary electrophoresis on a single microfluidic device.
- To assess the performance and limitations of this miniaturized DNA sequencing platform.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a hybrid glass-polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) wafer-scale construction.
- Integrated 250-nl reactors, affinity-capture purification chambers, and capillary electrophoresis channels.
- Incorporated pneumatic valves and pumps for automated fluid handling on the microfabricated device.
Main Results:
- Achieved complete Sanger sequencing from as little as 1 femtomole (fmol) of DNA template.
- Sequenced up to 556 continuous bases with 99% accuracy.
- Demonstrated read lengths sufficient for de novo sequencing of complex genomes.
Conclusions:
- The developed microfabricated bioprocessor offers a highly integrated and efficient platform for Sanger sequencing.
- This miniaturized DNA sequencer sets a benchmark for the ultimate cost and efficiency of Sanger sequencing.
- The lab-on-a-chip approach enables high-throughput and accurate DNA sequencing with minimal sample input.
Related Concept Videos
01:57Sanger Sequencing
DNA sequencing is a fundamental technique that is routinely used in the biological sciences. This method can be applied to a range of questions at different scales - from the sequencing of a cloned DNA fragment or the study of a mutation in a gene up to whole-genome sequencing. However, despite the widespread use of sequencing today, it was not until 1977 that Fredrick Sanger and his collaborators developed the chain-termination method to decode DNA sequences. It relies on the separation of a...
03:00Next-generation Sequencing
The first human genome sequencing project cost $2.7 billion and was declared complete in 2003, after 15 years of international cooperation and collaboration between several research teams and funding agencies. Today, with the advent of next-generation sequencing technologies, the cost and time of sequencing a human genome have dropped over 100 fold.
Next-Generation Sequencing Methods
Although all next-generation methods use different technologies, they all share a set of standard features.
Next-Generation Sequencing Methods
Although all next-generation methods use different technologies, they all share a set of standard features.