PEAKPCR

peakPCR develops Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) devices for research and private laboratories. peakPCR is a low-cost, small size device capable of performing real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). PCR is a method widely used in molecular biology to duplicate DNA segments, with applications such as genotyping, mutation detection, forensics, and paternity testing. The Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) is a widely used molecular technique to make millions of copies of a DNA sample, with applic... ations in a variety of fields such as medical diagnostics, biotechnology, and forensic sciences. We have analyzed the heat transfer limitations of conventional PCR machines. This has led to the design of a completely new sample holder with extremely high heating and cooling rates and a much lower sample volume, in order to cut analysis time from currently 1-2 h down to 10 minutes, and reagent consumption by 90%. Next to a first stand-alone desktop instrument, we have also developed a portable version that is battery-powered and that operates in conjunction with a smartphone. We aim to deploy these PCR devices to research and private laboratories at affordable prices.More