Rapid Detection of Tobacco Mosaic Virus from Crude Samples on an Oscillatory-flow Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction Microfluidics

An oscillatory-flow reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) microfluidics based on the capillary reactor was developed for the detection of tobacco mosaic virus (TMV). A pair of PCR primers was designed according to the TMV movement protein gene. Direct RT-PCR-amplified products, 179-base pair (bp) DNA fragments, from TMV particles have been successfully obtained in this research. 0.025% bovine serum albumin was used for passive and dynamic passivation to improve the PCR efficiency. On this device, the detection limit of 0.01 μg cDNA was achieved at the flow rate of 70 μl min−1, and the amplification of 179-bp fragments can be successfully performed within 17 min.