New PCR Thermal Cycler Fits in the Palm of your Hand

miniPCR thermal cyclers deliver the same high-end performance as established PCR platforms. But the advantages of being this small are huge.  You can carry them anywhere, they’re incredibly easy to use and they cost a lot less.

A traditional PCR system will set you back thousands of pounds; miniPCR costs less than £500. And miniPCR is fully compatible with standard PCR tubes and reagents, so you can adopt your existing PCR assays right away.

A unique, easy-to-use software interface lets users control and visualise their PCR reactions from their laptop, Android smartphone or tablet. Portable battery packs allow for on-site application in remote locations.  Cambio is delighted to offer UK customers this fantastic innovation.

miniPCR came into its own during the recent Ebola crises in West Africa. Professor Ian Goodfellow, who works in the Division of Virology in the University of Cambridge, saw that his years of experience could be put to use in what had become the worst Ebola crisis on record. He set off for Sierra Leone, taking with him several miniPCR units that he planned to use to train local lab technicians.

Goodfellow’s team, working with Public Health England, had set up a facility in the Ebola-ravaged city of Makeni. They needed to diagnose the virus quickly, and to track its spread. Using PCR to sequence the Ebola virus was key, but this required sample incubation at 22ºC. The traditional benchtop machines were failing to descend below 37ºC in the sweltering West African heat.

Desperately looking for a solution, the quick thinking Goodfellow realised he could carry the highly-portable miniPCR anywhere. By placing the unit next to the facility’s air conditioners, the team was able to cool the samples to the requisite 22 degrees and successfully sequence the viruses.

“Without the miniPCR we wouldn’t be able to do the sequencing,” said Goodfellow. “Our traditional, very expensive (£30,000) real-time PCR machines were unable to reach 22ºC, but the miniPCR did a fantastic job.” Goodfellow was so impressed by the miniPCR’s performance that he is thinking of bringing the machines to his lab in Cambridge for use in routine PCR procedures, which he says would free up bench-top machines for larger and more complex jobs.