Isothermal Primer Set for Rapid Lyme Disease Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for diagnosing Lyme disease are inaccurate and time-consuming, often leading to missed treatment opportunities due to similarities in symptoms with relapsing fever, and require expensive equipment and specialized personnel.
Innovation Solution
A primer set comprising six specific nucleotide sequences (SEQ ID NOs: 1 to 18) is used for isothermal amplification to detect Borrelia strains, allowing for rapid and inexpensive diagnosis of Lyme disease using a kit that includes reactants and reagents for isothermal amplification, enabling detection of the causative agent in biological samples.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional diagnostic methods are used, then equipment and personnel requirements are reduced, but diagnostic accuracy and speed deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces complex mechanical diagnostic equipment with a biochemical amplification system. The isothermal amplification method substitutes sophisticated instrumentation with a simple test tube reaction system that uses temperature-controlled incubation and visual detection, achieving high diagnostic accuracy without requiring expensive or complex equipment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the reaction temperature parameter from variable (PCR) to constant isothermal conditions. This parameter change simplifies the equipment requirements while maintaining amplification efficiency, allowing the reaction to proceed at a single optimized temperature (e.g., 65°C) throughout the entire process, thereby improving diagnostic accuracy with simpler equipment.
2Productivity
If conventional diagnostic methods are used, then equipment cost is reduced, but diagnostic time and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs periodic cycling of primers during isothermal amplification, where multiple primers are added at specific time intervals to progressively amplify the target sequence. This periodic addition of primers accelerates the amplification process, reducing diagnostic time while maintaining simplicity and avoiding the need for complex equipment.
Solution Approach 2:
The isothermal amplification process maintains continuous useful action by keeping the reaction at a constant optimal temperature throughout, eliminating the repeated heating and cooling cycles required by PCR. This continuous isothermal condition sustains enzymatic activity and amplification efficiency, significantly reducing diagnostic time without increasing equipment complexity.
3Reliability
If symptom-based diagnosis is used, then treatment timing is delayed, but diagnostic cost is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent enables preliminary detection of Borrelia infection before characteristic symptoms like erythema migrans fully develop. By detecting bacterial DNA at the molecular level during the early incubation phase, the system provides reliable diagnosis and enables timely treatment initiation, preventing disease progression while remaining cost-effective compared to waiting for symptom manifestation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces molecular detection of bacterial DNA as an intermediary between asymptomatic infection and symptomatic disease. This intermediary detection method provides reliable early diagnosis by identifying the pathogen's genetic material before clinical symptoms appear, enabling timely intervention without requiring expensive specialized equipment.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The primer set enables specific and rapid detection of Lyme disease, reducing the risk of missed diagnoses and allowing for early treatment, while being cost-effective and accessible without specialized equipment, with results achievable in under an hour.
Implementation Method 1
A primer set comprising six specific nucleotide sequences (SEQ ID NOs: 1 to 18) is used for isothermal amplification to detect Borrelia strains
Implementation Method 2
A primer is able to initiate DNA synthesis in the presence of a reagent for polymerization (DNA polymerase or reverse transcriptase) and four different deoxynucleoside triphosphates (dNTPs)
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a primer set for diagnosing Lyme disease and a composition including the same. Specifically, using a composition and kit including the primer set capable of detecting the causative agent of Lyme disease, it is possible to detect a Borrelia strain, which is the causative agent of Lyme disease, in a more accurate manner, and to diagnose Lyme disease in a rapid and inexpensive manner.