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Frederik Faust

Why did we contact them?

We contacted Frederik Faust, our contact person at Milenia Biotec, a company that produces lateral flow assays, to inquire about the HybriDetect Variant and whether it would be possible to design a customized test strip for our project. Our objective was to understand the feasibility, timeline, and technical requirements for adapting the strip to our DNA-based detection system. We hoped to clarify whether Milenia could directly integrate oligonucleotides into the strip for us or if we would need to prepare this ourselves.

Stakeholder Name
Frederik Faust

Discussion

Timeline and feasibility of a customized variant

Frederik explained that producing a custom HybriDetect Variant test strip according to our requirements would be indeed possible, but would require 4-6 weeks, which was unfortunately too long for our project timeline.

Alternative solution: do-it-yourself integration

  • He kindly suggested a practical alternative: we could apply and dry our own oligonucleotides directly onto the MGHD test strips.
  • The sample application pad, which also contains the gold, is freely accessible and can take up to 10 µl of fluid without running.
  • This makes it possible to apply a mix of oligonucleotides (e.g. biotin-labeled + FAM-labeled) and let them dry directly on the pad.
  • This approach allows us to test and adjust the concentration of oligonucleotides ourselves and would also be a cheaper option compared to ordering a customized strip.
  • For drying, he suggested pipetting <10 µl onto the pad and incubating for about 2 hours at 37 °C (though a shorter time might already be sufficient for such small volumes).

Main Takeaways

  • A customized HybriDetect Variant would take 4-6 weeks. This is too long to fit into the timeline our project.
  • Practical and faster alternative: prepare our own test strips by drying oligonucleotides onto the gold pad.
  • We can test and optimize the oligo concentrations ourselves. This option is cheaper, faster, and gives us flexibility.

Integration

We implemented Frederik’s advice by:

  • Deciding to prepare the test strips ourselves using MGHD strips.
  • Testing different approaches to determine the optimal conditions for our assay.
  • Adjusting our timeline and resources accordingly, as we no longer needed to wait 4-6 weeks for customized strips.
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