May 15 2012
OPKO Health, Inc. (NYSE:OPK) today announced the receipt of a patent allowance from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for the patent application titled "Flow Control in Microfluidic Systems".
This patent describes methods for passively regulating flow in microfluidic systems. The techniques are particularly well suited for simple and portable analytical systems - such as those used in point-of-care diagnostics. Actions such as stopping and re-starting flow and controlled reaction and incubation times which would normally require complex instrumentation can be pre-programmed in the design of each microfluidic system. This enables the performance of relatively complex assays with minimal equipment. Bio-analytical procedures such as thermo-cycling for PCR, enzymatic amplification of signals in solution, and timed incubation and mixing can now be implemented in robust, easy-to-use, and cost-effective systems.
"Although this patent was intended to apply to a specific set of assays currently under development at OPKO, we view this as a particularly important enabling technology for adapting almost any laboratory test onto our platform," said Phillip Frost, M.D., OPKO's Chairman and CEO.
Source: OPKO Health, Inc.