We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies. Cookie Policy.

Features Partner Sites Information LinkXpress hp
Sign In
Advertise with Us
LGC Clinical Diagnostics

Download Mobile App




Voice-Activated Sample Pre-Treatment Device Enables Hands-Free, Safer DNA Handling

By LabMedica International staff writers
Posted on 10 Feb 2023
Print article
Image: The small, voice-activated device extracts and pretreats bacterial DNA (Photo courtesy of ACS Sensors)
Image: The small, voice-activated device extracts and pretreats bacterial DNA (Photo courtesy of ACS Sensors)

Scientists using samples containing pathogens work with the smallest amounts possible in order to avoid accidental infection. In the case of highly contagious bacterial diseases, on-site sample analysis is suitable for rapid diagnoses. Additionally, scientists with visual or other physical impairments can find it difficult to operate complex instruments, particularly those designed for tiny volumes. Now, the same technology used by smart voice assistants could also make the laboratory a safer place for scientists and technicians handling infectious samples.

Hands-free devices that can be operated quickly using voice commands could make the laboratory safer for scientists and technicians. Researchers at Kyung Hee University (Yongin, South Korea) set out to combine a speech recognition app with a miniaturized extraction system to do just that. The researchers first built a microfluidic chip with multiple chambers linked together by six 3-way solenoid valves, which were operated by a micro-controller connected to a Bluetooth module. The palm-sized device weighed only 11 ounces and was powered by a portable battery or a 5V smartphone charger. Using existing speech recognition software, the team went on to customize a smartphone app to listen for specific voice commands.

The voice-activated system is simple to operate. As soon as the user says one of the operation commands out loud, the app wirelessly sends an initiation signal to the micro-controller. After receiving the signal, the micro-controller automatically begins a series of steps, including sample loading, washing and releasing the purified DNA into a collection chamber. Currently, the system requires the user to touch the smartphone to start the speech recognition software, although the entire operation could soon become completely hands-free with the addition of virtual assistant software.

The researchers conducted tests of the system in which the voice-controlled device extracted DNA from Salmonella Typhimurium, purifying a 10-µL sample with an efficiency of 70% in less than a minute. The system’s performance was lower as compared to a traditional DNA extraction kit, although its voice control, portability and quick automation lend it an advantage for convenient and safe bacterial DNA testing, according to the researchers.

Related Links:
Kyung Hee University

Gold Member
Antipsychotic TDM Assays
Saladax Antipsychotic Assays
Verification Panels for Assay Development & QC
Seroconversion Panels
New
TRAcP 5b Assay
TRAcP 5b (BoneTRAP) Assay
New
Chagas Disease Test
LIAISON Chagas

Print article

Channels

Clinical Chemistry

view channel
Image: QIP-MS could predict and detect myeloma relapse earlier compared to currently used techniques (Photo courtesy of Adobe Stock)

Mass Spectrometry-Based Monitoring Technique to Predict and Identify Early Myeloma Relapse

Myeloma, a type of cancer that affects the bone marrow, is currently incurable, though many patients can live for over 10 years after diagnosis. However, around 1 in 5 individuals with myeloma have a high-risk... Read more

Immunology

view channel
Image: The cancer stem cell test can accurately choose more effective treatments (Photo courtesy of University of Cincinnati)

Stem Cell Test Predicts Treatment Outcome for Patients with Platinum-Resistant Ovarian Cancer

Epithelial ovarian cancer frequently responds to chemotherapy initially, but eventually, the tumor develops resistance to the therapy, leading to regrowth. This resistance is partially due to the activation... Read more

Technology

view channel
Image: Ziyang Wang and Shengxi Huang have developed a tool that enables precise insights into viral proteins and brain disease markers (Photo courtesy of Jeff Fitlow/Rice University)

Light Signature Algorithm to Enable Faster and More Precise Medical Diagnoses

Every material or molecule interacts with light in a unique way, creating a distinct pattern, much like a fingerprint. Optical spectroscopy, which involves shining a laser on a material and observing how... Read more

Industry

view channel
Image: The collaboration aims to leverage Oxford Nanopore\'s sequencing platform and Cepheid\'s GeneXpert system to advance the field of sequencing for infectious diseases (Photo courtesy of Cepheid)

Cepheid and Oxford Nanopore Technologies Partner on Advancing Automated Sequencing-Based Solutions

Cepheid (Sunnyvale, CA, USA), a leading molecular diagnostics company, and Oxford Nanopore Technologies (Oxford, UK), the company behind a new generation of sequencing-based molecular analysis technologies,... Read more
Copyright © 2000-2025 Globetech Media. All rights reserved.