BioMicro Systems – optimizing Microarray results with the MAUI product line

Founded in 2000, BioMicro® Systems, Inc. develops and commercializes biological research products based on its proprietary microfluidic handling technologies. With its biochemistry, molecular biology and engineering expertise, BioMicro System designs and manufactures analytical instruments and complex high precision microfluidic consumables.

An innovator in the genomic revolution, BioMicro Systems focuses on offering high-quality microarray hybridization and wash systems. BioMicro Systems MAUI® product line includes MAUI Hybridization Systems, MAUI Mixer hybridization chambers, and MAUI Wash Systems which provide brilliant, consistent results and process improvements, allowing customers to augment and optimize their throughput leading to less rework. BioMicro Systems targets their product development to deliver easy-to-use, state-of-the-art equipment that meets the needs of any size laboratory worldwide.

Biomicro Systems Target Market

DNA microarrays (also referred to as biochips, DNA chips, gene arrays or gene chips) have increasingly become the preferred method to investigate gene function on a large scale. With DNA microarrays, up to 400,000 genes or gene fragments of known sequence can be placed on a single glass slide. These genes are then exposed to a DNA sample to look for complementary DNA-DNA binding. Researchers simultaneously conduct thousands of massively parallel biochemical reactions and profoundly accelerate genetic evaluations at a significantly lower cost.

The microarray approach enables massive throughput and has become a dominant technology with applications in a variety of fields such as gene expression profiling, array-based Comparative Genomic Hybridization (aCGH), DNA sequencing, molecular diagnostics, SNP analysis, fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH), location analysis (ChIP-on-chip), methylation analysis, splice variant analysis and microRNA studies.

A tremendous amount of effort has been expended to optimize microarray technology. However, the most common method used for manual hybridization is a simple glass coverslip. Manual coverslip hybridization methods are proven and have favorable results due to small, highly concentrated hybridization buffer requirements. A major coverslip method shortcoming is the hybridization buffer remains static over the microarray throughout the experiment. The reaction is limited by diffusion without active mixing of the hybridization buffer resulting in inconsistent data quality.

Biomicro Systems Solution

The MAUI product line addresses the stringent demands of microarray research for high-quality data. The MAUI Hybridization System, MAUI Mixer hybridization chambers and MAUI Wash System work seamlessly together to deliver consistent and reproducible results.

MAUI Hybridization System
The patented MAUI Hybridization System actively mixes low-volume concentrated hybridization solution across the surface of a microarray. This instrument is ideal for customers who have very limited amount of sample. Active Mixing™ greatly improves hybridization kinetics by continuously moving the hybridization buffer, resulting in improved detection of low-abundance gene transcripts.  The MAUI Hybridization System has also been found to greatly improve uniformity in FISH experiments.

Each MAUI Hybridization System is comprised of an instrument (4 and 12-slide models available) that provides mixing and heating as well as a consumable MAUI Mixer hybridization chambers. The instrument improves consistency, sensitivity and lowers failure rates associated with other hybridization methods. The MAUI Hybridization System designed as an open system, maximizes application compatibility by accommodating multiple commercial and custom microarray platforms.

MAUI Hybridization System Key Benefits:

• 3-10 fold increase in sensitivity
• Consistent and reproducible results
• Thorough and efficient Active Mixing
• Compatible with many commercially available arrays (NimbleGen, Invitrogen, Exiqon, Agilent, Operon and more)
• Easy to use
• Minimal maintenance

MAUI Mixer Hybridization Chambers

BioMicro offers several standard MAUI Mixer hybridization chambers to work with various microarray dimensions and protocols. Researchers have the flexibility to process one hybridization experiment in a single chamber MAUI Mixer or multiple individual hybridization experiments on a single microarray slide, saving both time and resources. BioMicro Systems recognizes that as more microarray applications and formats become available, the company will launch new MAUI Mixers to meet new applications and format requirements.

MAUI Mixer Key Benefits:

• Ultra-low sample volume (10-40μl)
• Multiple samples processed concurrently on a 1” x 3” slide
• Adaptable to various microarray configurations
• Labeled target recovery/buffer exchange
• Minimal sample evaporation

Experts in the drug discovery field suggest a tool is needed that can reduce the time and expense associated with the pre-clinical and clinical stages of drug development. The MAUI Hybridization System may be utilized to accelerate the time and reduce the cost of the drug development process. Since the drug development process has a diverse use of microarrays, the MAUI Hybridization System ability to automate and improve microarray processing for many application types are compelling reasons to implement the MAUI technology throughout this process.

MAUI Wash System

BioMicro Systems continually looks for ways to utilize its microfluidic expertise to improve scientific processes and eliminate bottlenecks. The MAUI Wash System is the latest addition to the BioMicro product line. It works in tandem with the MAUI Hybridization System to improve quality and consistency of microarray hybridization experiments by eliminating variability associated with manual wash protocols. The MAUI Wash System is an open system compatible with user-defined wash protocols and reagents.

MAUI Wash System benefits:

• Automated washing and drying of up to 12 microarray slides
• Consistent and reproducible results
• Integrated buffer heating capability
• Flexible and intuitive multi-protocol programming
• Slides protected from ambient light throughout entire process

BioMicro Systems Customer Comments

“We are very pleased with the consistent results and greatly improved analysis ratios that we have had with the MAUI Hybridization System. Now with three MAUI 12-Bay Systems in place, we will be more efficient and not have to worry about discrepancies in technical microarray hybridization. We are very pleased with the MAUI System and will continue with its use for many years.”

Holly Dressman, PhD
Lab Director of Duke Microarray Facility
Center for Applied Genome Technology
Institute of Genome Institute and Policy

“The use of the MAUI Hybridization System has made a significant difference in the sensitivity and reproducibility of our experiments and simply stated, has increased our confidence in the results. The MAUI System itself is easy to use, reliable and has been an integral component in the standardization of our hybridization protocols . . . I should be thanking you. The MAUI System and your support efforts have made my hybs effortless!”

The Biosensors Group
Naval Research Laboratory

“The MAUI Hybridization System is a highly economical instrument indispensable not only for microarray core facilities but also for the high-throughput microarray user. We have used it for both high-speed quality control applications . . . and for the typical array experiments. We are surprised at the ten-fold increase in sensitivity and the exceptional high signal-to-background ratios and strongly recommended this instrument to our users.”

Winfried Krueger, PhD
Laboratory for Microarray Technology
University of Connecticut Medical School

“The BioMicro MAUI Hybridization System is very simple to use, utilizes very small volumes, and is quite effective at minimizing background, improving hybridization uniformity and increasing signal. It has clearly improved our SARS coronavirus resequencing array results, and has enhanced detection of genes that are differentially expressed in our cancer-related studies.”

Lance D. Miller, PhD
Senior Group Leader
Microarray Expression Genomics Laboratory
Genome Institute of Singapore

Summary

BioMicro Systems offers a strong product portfolio that includes MAUI Hybridization Systems, MAUI Mixer hybridization chambers, and MAUI Wash Systems. These MAUI products are designed specifically to address the microarray processing needs of drug discovery research by enabling improved sensitivity, consistency, and flexibility of microarray experimentation. BioMicro Systems continues to expand the versatile MAUI product line to enable applications beyond DNA microarrays.