A new platform technology for quantitative diagnostics, monitoring or screening applications.

UTS™ technology, based on well-proven procedures and reagents, represents a generally applicable, novel, low cost technology platform for the study and quantitation of most receptor-target binding assays. The technology can be easily automated, multiplexed and miniaturised making it suitable for the Point-of-Use market in clinical and veterinary in-vitro diagnostics, environmental monitoring, and food quality assurance. The system also has clear potential in pharmaceutical R&D.

Proven applicability to high, medium and low molecular weight analytes, indicates the ability to perform a wide range of immunoassays currently required in routine and special clinical laboratories, as well as food quality assurance and environmental applications, all in a simplified format and at a competitive price.

The patented UTS™ technology provides a universally applicable proprietary platform suitable for a whole range of diagnostic tests and other quantitative assays requiring high analytical sensitivity inter alia biochips, immunoassay diagnostics, theranostics, DNA diagnostics, acidification assays, food quality assurance, environmental monitoring and not least, proteomics and drug development. Utilising simple novel potentiometric measurements UTS™ has already shown it can achieve higher sensitivity levels than those generally achieved by amperometric and optical biosensors. UTS™ technology has the advantage of simplicity and sensitivity (<50fM), at a low cost, utilising tried and tested technologies in a novel arrangement.

The UTS™ technology requires minimal sample preparation, is rapid (<15mins for a single assay), has shown a wide dynamic range (4-5 orders of magnitude) and is suitable for multi-analyte determination. In essence it could be arranged as a simple one shot disposable diagnostic, a panel of tests or even a small sensor array. The terms biosensor, sensor array and biochip (cell-chip, protein-chip or even DNA-chip) are all applicable.

UTS™ Microarray protein chip technology: a chip platform for diagnostics and R&D

UTS™ technology lends itself to single test strips or multi-analyte panel testing. The preferred array size would be less than fifty, although, arrays of a hundred or more are conceivable, subject to more complicated electronics and tracking. The sensor chips can be screen-printed or engineered onto an electronic PCB board. The shape and layout of the sensors can have bespoke design. For automation and POC applications the chips can be incorporated into a plastic moulded enclosure containing the fluidics required to apply the sample and perform the assay steps.

How does it work?

The technology detects receptor-target complexes (proteins (e.g. antibodies) or DNA) formed on a conductive polymer layer attached to the electrode. Using the patented “charge-step” procedure, detection is mediated by a secondary reaction that produces charged products causing a shift in potential at the surface of an electrode due to local changes in redox states or pH.

The UTS™ Protein Chip
The current chip comprises an immobilised bioreceptor at the surface of a polypyrrole coated gold or carbon electrode on a plastic support. Polypyrrole is a conductive polymer and is laid down by electrochemical polymerisation. Other conducting polymers such as polyaniline, polythiophene or polyfuran could also be used.

Screen-printed chips are currently being used for our technology. These are commercially more attractive because of the reduced cost of manufacture. In the past we have successfully used thin-film gold sensors on ceramic and etched electroplated gold sensors on plastic.

The detection range and sensitivity of the UTS™ Technology can be influenced by changing the properties of the polymer layer at the polymerisation step to enable measurement of a wide range of concentrations. Sensortec Limited has elucidated and patented the main factors responsible for imparting the required metallic redox properties to the polymer film.