Sequencing Nucleic Acid Polymers with Electron Microscopy

Abstract

This invention relates to using an electron microscope to sequence by direct inspection of labeled, stretched DNA. This method will have higher accuracy, lower cost, and longer read length than current DNA sequencing methods.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 60 / 997,427, filed Oct. 4, 2007, and U.S. Provisional Application No. 61 / 132,960, filed Jun. 23, 2008, the disclosures of which are expressly incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0002]The invention relates to methods of sequencing nucleic acids.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0003]Current DNA sequencing is done mostly by Sanger methods and other sequencing-by-synthesis methods. These methods suffer from high cost, short read lengths, and insufficient throughput.[0004]Sequencing by electron microscopy has also been explored. The idea of sequencing by electron microscopy is not new. It was proposed by Richard Feynman only six years after the structure of DNA was discovered. However, it has never been successfully used to generate meaningful sequence information.[0005]The transmission electron microscope (TEM) works by sending an electron bea...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0009]The invention provides methods for using an electron microscope to sequence by direct inspection of labeled, stretched nucleic acid, such as DNA. The methods, devices, and compositions of the invention allow controllable placement of a nucleic acid on a substrate, so that there is consistent base-to-base spacing, allowing for accurate nucleic acid sequencing information to be obtained using electron microscopy. The invention may be implemented in a number of ways.

[0029]According to an even further aspect of the invention, a method for the controlled placement of at least one nucleic acid strand onto a substrate may include providing a solution containing a plurality of nucleic acid strands, inserting a tip of a needle into the solution, pulling the tip of the needle out of the solution containing a plurality of nucleic acid strands, where the tip of the needle has been functionalized with a first coating that binds to nucleic acids, stretching the nucleic acid strand into empty space such that the single strand of nucleic acid is suspended between an air / solvent interface and each tip of the needle, and) attaching at least one stretched nucleic acid strand to a substrate. The nucleic acid is high molecular weight DNA.

Problems solved by technology

These methods suffer from high cost, short read lengths, and insufficient throughput.

However, it has never been successfully used to generate meaningful sequence information.

Ordinary DNA, comprising low-Z hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and phosphorus atoms shows almost no contrast in an electron microscope and is almost impossible to see against a supporting background.

The uncontrollable placing of a marked single-stranded nucleic acid polymer on the specimen support resulted in a rather non-uniform base-to-base spacing.

Images