Pre-coated Multi-well Plate for Rapid Drug Screening
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for assessing drug efficacy in oncology require a lengthy 'wait and watch' period, during which patients may receive ineffective treatments, allowing diseases like cancer to progress.
Innovation Solution
The development of an array of distinct and separate regions on a sheet or well plate, each pre-disposed with specific chemical and/or biochemical compounds, allows for rapid and cost-effective screening of drug efficacy by eliminating the need for multiple pipetting operations and reducing preparation time.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional imaging methods are used to assess drug efficacy, then measurement precision can be maintained, but loss of time increases significantly due to the wait and watch period
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-coating the well plate surface with extracellular matrix proteins before adding tumor cells. This pre-preparation of the cellular environment allows cells to adhere and begin proliferating immediately upon addition, eliminating the need for separate coating steps and reducing overall assessment time while maintaining experimental accuracy
2Manufacturing precision
If multiple pipetting operations are performed for compound screening, then manufacturing precision can be maintained, but device complexity and loss of time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple compound dispensing operations into a single multi-well plate format where various compounds are directly added to different wells in one step. This consolidation of operations reduces the number of repetitive pipetting actions required while maintaining precise compound delivery to each well, thereby simplifying the overall screening process
3Measurement precision
If traditional drug screening methods are used, then measurement precision is maintained, but productivity decreases due to lengthy evaluation periods
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements continuity of useful action by establishing cell cultures in advance and maintaining them in a ready state for immediate drug testing. The pre-established cellular systems allow drug efficacy assessments to proceed continuously without interruption for cell preparation, thereby increasing the rate at which drug candidates can be evaluated while preserving measurement accuracy
Data Source
AI summary
An article of manufacture includes an array of distinct and separate regions with respective pharmaceutical compounds located thereon. The array of distinct and separate regions includes a first region with a first set of one or more pharmaceutical compounds located thereon; a second region, that is distinct and separate from the first region, with a second set of one or more pharmaceutical compounds, that is distinct from the first set of one or more pharmaceutical compounds, located thereon; and a third region, that is distinct and separate from the first region and the second region, with a third set of one or more pharmaceutical compounds, that is distinct from the first set of one or more pharmaceutical compounds and the second set of one or more pharmaceutical compounds, located thereon.