Hello!
I’ve heard You try to create molecular test-system for TB. I have a question - may be it will be better direction to create ultra-compact PCR station for Real-time PCR? As small and cheap as glucose meter (due to using MEMS modulaes for reagents, something like this - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bio-MEMS)? Fully automated, so you can enter primers structure in it with sensor display (or choose it from database - local or remote), synthesize primers automatically, then put stripe with sample like in glugose meter (or drop with prepared sample), and it will detect RNA and DNA and their levels automatically. It will be usefull not only for TB but for a lot of other applications.
What do You think? Accordingly to Your experience - is it looks possible?
I understand, that this task can be not very easy, but due to microdoses of reagents for tests and microscale of reactions volume it can be very cheap and can provide significant amounts of tests from one “charge” of reagents. Especially with contemporary superhydrophobic coatings - all reagents will pass through the Lab-on-Chip channels without losses and it is possible to manipulate with liquid materials in the same way as with elastic flexible non-adhesive materials.
http://pubs.rsc.org/en/journals/journalissues/lc#!recentarticles&adv
http://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2016/lc/c6lc00331a#!divAbstract
http://www.neverwet.com/applications/product-characteristics.php
And thanks to microscale of reaction volume it will be very easy to provide precise temperature mode for PCR steps.
Photosensors size and sensitivity now also are small and high enough to provide accurate automatic measurements of fluorescence level in this microscale volumes.
Best regards, Dan.