1
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Fernández-Mateo R, García-Sánchez P, Ramos A, Morgan H. Concentration-polarization electroosmosis for particle fractionation. LAB ON A CHIP 2024; 24:2968-2974. [PMID: 38726642 DOI: 10.1039/d4lc00081a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/29/2024]
Abstract
Concentration-polarization electroosmosis (CPEO) refers to steady-state electroosmotic flows around charged dielectric micro-particles induced by low-frequency AC electric fields. Recently, these flows were shown to cause repulsion of colloidal particles from the wall of a microfluidic channel when an electric field is applied along the length of the channel. In this work, we exploit this mechanism to demonstrate fractionation of micron-sized polystyrene particles and bacteria in a flow-focusing device. The results are in agreement with predictions of the CPEO theory. The ease of implementation of CPEO-based fractionation in microfluidics makes it an ideal candidate for combining with current techniques commonly used to generate particle lift, such as inertial or viscoelastic focusing, requiring no extra fabrication steps other than inserting two electrodes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raúl Fernández-Mateo
- School of Electronics and Computer Science, University of Southampton, Southampton SO17 1BJ, UK.
| | - Pablo García-Sánchez
- Depto. Electrónica y Electromagnetismo, Facultad de Física, Universidad de Sevilla, Avda. Reina Mercedes s/n, 41012, Sevilla, Spain
| | - Antonio Ramos
- Depto. Electrónica y Electromagnetismo, Facultad de Física, Universidad de Sevilla, Avda. Reina Mercedes s/n, 41012, Sevilla, Spain
| | - Hywel Morgan
- School of Electronics and Computer Science, University of Southampton, Southampton SO17 1BJ, UK.
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2
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Jeon H, Lee SH, Shin J, Song K, Ahn N, Park J. Elasto-inertial microfluidic separation of microspheres with submicron resolution at high-throughput. MICROSYSTEMS & NANOENGINEERING 2024; 10:15. [PMID: 38264707 PMCID: PMC10803301 DOI: 10.1038/s41378-023-00633-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2023] [Revised: 10/23/2023] [Accepted: 11/08/2023] [Indexed: 01/25/2024]
Abstract
Elasto-inertial microfluidic separation offers many advantages including high throughput and separation resolution. Even though the separation efficiency highly depends on precise control of the flow conditions, no concrete guidelines have been reported yet in elasto-inertial microfluidics. Here, we propose a dimensionless analysis for precise estimation of the microsphere behaviors across the interface of Newtonian and viscoelastic fluids. Reynolds number, modified Weissenberg number, and modified elastic number are used to investigate the balance between inertial and elastic lift forces. Based on the findings, we introduce a new dimensionless number defined as the width of the Newtonian fluid stream divided by microsphere diameter. The proposed dimensionless analysis allows us to predict whether the microspheres migrate across the co-flow interface. The theoretical estimation is found to be in good agreement with the experimental results using 2.1- and 3.2-μm-diameter polystyrene microspheres in a co-flow of water and polyethylene oxide solution. Based on the theoretical estimation, we also realize submicron separation of the microspheres with 2.1 and 2.5 μm in diameter at high throughput, high purity (>95%), and high recovery rate (>97%). The applicability of the proposed method was validated by separation of platelets from similar-sized Escherichia coli (E.coli).
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Affiliation(s)
- Hyunwoo Jeon
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Chonnam National University, 77 Yongbong-ro Buk-gu, Gwangju, 61186 Republic of Korea
| | - Song Ha Lee
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Chonnam National University, 77 Yongbong-ro Buk-gu, Gwangju, 61186 Republic of Korea
| | - Jongho Shin
- Analytical Engineering Team, Samsung Display Co., Ltd., 181 Samsung-ro, Tangjeong-myeon, Asan-si, Chungcheongnam-do, 31454 Republic of Korea
| | - Kicheol Song
- Analytical Engineering Team, Samsung Display Co., Ltd., 181 Samsung-ro, Tangjeong-myeon, Asan-si, Chungcheongnam-do, 31454 Republic of Korea
| | - Nari Ahn
- Analytical Engineering Team, Samsung Display Co., Ltd., 181 Samsung-ro, Tangjeong-myeon, Asan-si, Chungcheongnam-do, 31454 Republic of Korea
| | - Jinsoo Park
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Chonnam National University, 77 Yongbong-ro Buk-gu, Gwangju, 61186 Republic of Korea
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3
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Wang S, Xu Q, Zhang Z, Chen S, Jiang Y, Feng Z, Wang D, Jiang X. Reverse flow enhanced inertia pinched flow fractionation. LAB ON A CHIP 2023; 23:4324-4333. [PMID: 37702391 DOI: 10.1039/d3lc00473b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/14/2023]
Abstract
Particle separation plays a critical role in many biochemical analyses. In this article, we report a method of reverse flow enhanced inertia pinched flow fractionation (RF-iPFF) for particle separation. RF-iPFF separates particles by size based on the flow-induced inertial lift, and in the abruptly broadened segment, reverse flow is utilized to further enhance the separation distance between particles of different sizes. The separation performance can be significantly improved by reverse flow. Generally, compared with the case without reverse flow, this RF-iPFF technique can increase the particle throughput by about 10 times. To demonstrate the advantages of RF-iPFF, RF-iPFF was compared with traditional iPFF through a control experiment. RF-iPFF consistently outperformed iPFF across various conditions we studied. In addition, we use tumor cells spiked into the human whole blood to evaluate the separation performance of RF-iPFF.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saijie Wang
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Smart Healthcare Engineering, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Advanced Biomaterials, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, No. 1088 Xueyuan Rd, Nanshan District, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518055, China.
| | - Quanchen Xu
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Smart Healthcare Engineering, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Advanced Biomaterials, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, No. 1088 Xueyuan Rd, Nanshan District, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518055, China.
| | - Zhihan Zhang
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Smart Healthcare Engineering, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Advanced Biomaterials, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, No. 1088 Xueyuan Rd, Nanshan District, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518055, China.
| | - Shengbo Chen
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Smart Healthcare Engineering, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Advanced Biomaterials, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, No. 1088 Xueyuan Rd, Nanshan District, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518055, China.
| | - Yizhou Jiang
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Smart Healthcare Engineering, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Advanced Biomaterials, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, No. 1088 Xueyuan Rd, Nanshan District, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518055, China.
- State Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Disease, Fuwai Hospital, National Center for Cardiovascular Diseases, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100037, China
| | - Zhuowei Feng
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Smart Healthcare Engineering, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Advanced Biomaterials, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, No. 1088 Xueyuan Rd, Nanshan District, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518055, China.
| | - Dou Wang
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Smart Healthcare Engineering, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Advanced Biomaterials, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, No. 1088 Xueyuan Rd, Nanshan District, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518055, China.
| | - Xingyu Jiang
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Smart Healthcare Engineering, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Advanced Biomaterials, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, No. 1088 Xueyuan Rd, Nanshan District, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518055, China.
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4
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Esan A, Vanholsbeeck F, Swift S, McGoverin CM. Continuous separation of bacterial cells from large debris using a spiral microfluidic device. BIOMICROFLUIDICS 2023; 17:044104. [PMID: 37576440 PMCID: PMC10415021 DOI: 10.1063/5.0159254] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2023] [Accepted: 07/17/2023] [Indexed: 08/15/2023]
Abstract
With the global increase in food exchange, rapid identification and enumeration of bacteria has become crucial for protecting consumers from bacterial contamination. Efficient analysis requires the separation of target particles (e.g., bacterial cells) from food and/or sampling matrices to prevent matrix interference with the detection and analysis of target cells. However, studies on the separation of bacteria-sized particles and defined particles, such as bacterial cells, from heterogeneous debris, such as meat swab suspensions, are limited. In this study, we explore the use of passive-based inertial microfluidics to separate bacterial cells from debris, such as fascia, muscle tissues, and cotton fibers, extracted from ground meat and meat swabs-a novel approach demonstrated for the first time. Our objective is to evaluate the recovery efficiency of bacterial cells from large debris obtained from ground meat and meat swab suspensions using a spiral microfluidic device. In this study, we establish the optimal flow rates and Dean number for continuous bacterial cell and debris separation and a methodology to determine the percentage of debris removed from the sample suspension. Our findings demonstrate an average recovery efficiency of ∼ 80% for bacterial cells separated from debris in meat swab suspensions, while the average recovery efficiency from ground beef suspensions was ∼ 70%. Furthermore, approximately 50% of the debris in the ground meat suspension were separated from bacterial cells.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Simon Swift
- Department of Molecular Medicine and Pathology, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
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5
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de Timary G, Rousseau CJ, Van Melderen L, Scheid B. Shear-enhanced sorting of ovoid and filamentous bacterial cells using pinch flow fractionation. LAB ON A CHIP 2023; 23:659-670. [PMID: 36562423 DOI: 10.1039/d2lc00969b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
In this paper, we experimentally investigate the influence of the flow rate on the trajectory of ovoid and filamentous bacterial cells of E. coli in a low aspect ratio pinch flow fractionation device. To that aim, we vary the Reynolds number over two orders of magnitude, while monitoring the dynamics of the cells across our device. At low flow rates, filamentous cells adopt several rotational motions in the pinched segment, which are induced both by the shear rate and by their close interactions with the nearest wall. As a result, the geometrical centre of the filamentous cells deviates towards the centre of the channel, which increases their effective sorting diameter depending on the length of their major axis as well as on the rotational mode they adopt in the pinch. As the flow rate increases, particles are forced to align vertically in the pinch, in the direction of the main shear gradient, which reduces the amplitude of the lateral deviation generated by their rotation. The trajectory of the particles in the expansion is directly determined by their position at the pinch outlet. As a consequence, the position of the filamentous cells at the outlet of the device strongly depends on the flow rate as well as on the length of their major axis. Based on these observations we optimized the flow conditions to successfully extract an ultra high purity sample of filamentous cells from a solution containing mainly ovoid cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guillaume de Timary
- Transfers, Interfaces and Processes (TIPs) - ULB, C.P. 165/67, Brussels, Belgium.
| | | | | | - Benoit Scheid
- Transfers, Interfaces and Processes (TIPs) - ULB, C.P. 165/67, Brussels, Belgium.
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6
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Cheng Y, Zhang S, Qin L, Zhao J, Song H, Yuan Y, Sun J, Tian F, Liu C. Poly(ethylene oxide) Concentration Gradient-Based Microfluidic Isolation of Circulating Tumor Cells. Anal Chem 2023; 95:3468-3475. [PMID: 36725367 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.2c05257] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) have emerged as promising circulating biomarkers for non-invasive cancer diagnosis and management. Isolation and detection of CTCs in clinical samples are challenging due to the extreme rarity and high heterogeneity of CTCs. Here, we describe a poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) concentration gradient-based microfluidic method for rapid, label-free, highly efficient isolation of CTCs directly from whole blood samples. Stable concentration gradients of PEO were formed within the microchannel by co-injecting the side fluid (blood sample spiked with 0.025% PEO) and center fluid (0.075% PEO solution). The competition between the elastic lift force and the inertial lift force enabled size-based separation of large CTCs and small blood cells based on their distinct migration patterns. The microfluidic device could process 1 mL of blood sample in 30 min, with a separation efficiency of >90% and an enrichment ratio of >700 for tumor cells. The isolated CTCs from blood samples were enumerated by immunofluorescence staining, allowing for discrimination of breast cancer patients from healthy donors with an accuracy of 84.2%. The concentration gradient-based microfluidic separation provides a powerful tool for label-free isolation of CTCs for a wide range of clinical applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yangchang Cheng
- Beijing Engineering Research Center for BioNanotechnology, CAS Key Laboratory of Standardization and Measurement for Nanotechnology, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing 100190, China.,School of Future Technology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Shaohua Zhang
- Department of Oncology, Senior Department of Oncology, The Fifth Medical Center of PLA General Hospital, Beijing 100071, China
| | - Lili Qin
- Department of Oncology, Senior Department of Oncology, The Fifth Medical Center of PLA General Hospital, Beijing 100071, China
| | - Junxiang Zhao
- Beijing Engineering Research Center for BioNanotechnology, CAS Key Laboratory of Standardization and Measurement for Nanotechnology, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing 100190, China.,School of Future Technology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Hua Song
- Department of Oncology, Senior Department of Oncology, The Fifth Medical Center of PLA General Hospital, Beijing 100071, China
| | - Yang Yuan
- Department of Oncology, Senior Department of Oncology, The Fifth Medical Center of PLA General Hospital, Beijing 100071, China
| | - Jiashu Sun
- Beijing Engineering Research Center for BioNanotechnology, CAS Key Laboratory of Standardization and Measurement for Nanotechnology, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing 100190, China.,School of Future Technology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Fei Tian
- Beijing Engineering Research Center for BioNanotechnology, CAS Key Laboratory of Standardization and Measurement for Nanotechnology, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing 100190, China.,School of Future Technology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Chao Liu
- Beijing Engineering Research Center for BioNanotechnology, CAS Key Laboratory of Standardization and Measurement for Nanotechnology, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing 100190, China.,School of Future Technology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
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7
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Xiang N, Ni Z. Portable Battery-Driven Microfluidic Cell Separation Instrument with Multiple Operational Modes. Anal Chem 2022; 94:16813-16820. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.2c03833] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Nan Xiang
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing 211189, China
| | - Zhonghua Ni
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing 211189, China
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8
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Gharib G, Bütün İ, Muganlı Z, Kozalak G, Namlı İ, Sarraf SS, Ahmadi VE, Toyran E, van Wijnen AJ, Koşar A. Biomedical Applications of Microfluidic Devices: A Review. BIOSENSORS 2022; 12:bios12111023. [PMID: 36421141 PMCID: PMC9688231 DOI: 10.3390/bios12111023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2022] [Revised: 10/30/2022] [Accepted: 11/08/2022] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
Both passive and active microfluidic chips are used in many biomedical and chemical applications to support fluid mixing, particle manipulations, and signal detection. Passive microfluidic devices are geometry-dependent, and their uses are rather limited. Active microfluidic devices include sensors or detectors that transduce chemical, biological, and physical changes into electrical or optical signals. Also, they are transduction devices that detect biological and chemical changes in biomedical applications, and they are highly versatile microfluidic tools for disease diagnosis and organ modeling. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the significant advances that have been made in the development of microfluidics devices. We will discuss the function of microfluidic devices as micromixers or as sorters of cells and substances (e.g., microfiltration, flow or displacement, and trapping). Microfluidic devices are fabricated using a range of techniques, including molding, etching, three-dimensional printing, and nanofabrication. Their broad utility lies in the detection of diagnostic biomarkers and organ-on-chip approaches that permit disease modeling in cancer, as well as uses in neurological, cardiovascular, hepatic, and pulmonary diseases. Biosensor applications allow for point-of-care testing, using assays based on enzymes, nanozymes, antibodies, or nucleic acids (DNA or RNA). An anticipated development in the field includes the optimization of techniques for the fabrication of microfluidic devices using biocompatible materials. These developments will increase biomedical versatility, reduce diagnostic costs, and accelerate diagnosis time of microfluidics technology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ghazaleh Gharib
- Faculty of Engineering and Natural Science, Sabanci University, Istanbul 34956, Turkey
- Sabanci University Nanotechnology Research and Application Centre (SUNUM), Istanbul 34956, Turkey
- Center of Excellence for Functional Surfaces and Interfaces for Nano Diagnostics (EFSUN), Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Sabanci University, Istanbul 34956, Turkey
| | - İsmail Bütün
- Faculty of Engineering and Natural Science, Sabanci University, Istanbul 34956, Turkey
| | - Zülâl Muganlı
- Faculty of Engineering and Natural Science, Sabanci University, Istanbul 34956, Turkey
| | - Gül Kozalak
- Faculty of Engineering and Natural Science, Sabanci University, Istanbul 34956, Turkey
- Center of Excellence for Functional Surfaces and Interfaces for Nano Diagnostics (EFSUN), Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Sabanci University, Istanbul 34956, Turkey
| | - İlayda Namlı
- Faculty of Engineering and Natural Science, Sabanci University, Istanbul 34956, Turkey
| | | | | | - Erçil Toyran
- Faculty of Engineering and Natural Science, Sabanci University, Istanbul 34956, Turkey
| | - Andre J. van Wijnen
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Vermont, 89 Beaumont Avenue, Burlington, VT 05405, USA
| | - Ali Koşar
- Faculty of Engineering and Natural Science, Sabanci University, Istanbul 34956, Turkey
- Sabanci University Nanotechnology Research and Application Centre (SUNUM), Istanbul 34956, Turkey
- Center of Excellence for Functional Surfaces and Interfaces for Nano Diagnostics (EFSUN), Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Sabanci University, Istanbul 34956, Turkey
- Turkish Academy of Sciences (TÜBA), Çankaya, Ankara 06700, Turkey
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9
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Zhang S, Deng J, Li J, Tian F, Liu C, Fang L, Sun J. Advanced microfluidic technologies for isolating extracellular vesicles. Trends Analyt Chem 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.trac.2022.116817] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
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10
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Li M, Ge C, Yang Y, Gan M, Xu Y, Chen L, Li S. Direct separation and enumeration of CTCs in viscous blood based on co-flow microchannel with tunable shear rate: a proof-of-principle study. Anal Bioanal Chem 2022; 414:7683-7694. [PMID: 36048191 DOI: 10.1007/s00216-022-04299-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2022] [Revised: 08/04/2022] [Accepted: 08/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
Abstract
Circulating tumor cells (CTCs), which have extremely low density in whole blood, are an important indicator of primary tumor metastasis. Isolation and enumeration of these cells are critical for clinical applications. Separation of CTCs from massive blood cells without labeling and addition of synthetic polymers is challenging. Herein, a novel well-defined co-flow microfluidic device is presented and used to separate CTCs in viscous blood by applying both inertial and viscoelastic forces. Diluted blood without any synthetic polymer and buffer solution were used as viscoelastic fluid and Newtonian fluid, respectively, and they were co-flowed in the designed chip to form a sheath flow. The co-flow system provides the function of particle pre-focusing and creates a tunable shear rate region at the interface to adjust the migration of particles or cells from the sample solution to the buffer solution. Successful separation of CTCs from viscous blood was demonstrated and enumeration was also conducted by image recognition after separation. The statistical results indicated that a recovery rate of cancer cells greater than 87% was obtained using the developed method, which proved that the direct separation of CTCs from diluted blood can be achieved without the addition of any synthetic polymer to prepare viscoelastic fluid. This method holds great promise for the separation of cells in viscous biological fluid without either complicated channel structures or the addition of synthetic polymers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengnan Li
- Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Technology and Systems, Ministry of Education & Key Disciplines Laboratory of Novel Micro-Nano Devices and System Technology, College of Optoelectronic Engineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400044, China.,International R & D center of Micro-nano Systems and New Materials Technology, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400044, China
| | - Chuang Ge
- Chongqing Key Laboratory of Translational Research for Cancer Metastasis and Individualized Treatment, Chongqing University Cancer Hospital, Chongqing, 400030, China
| | - Yuping Yang
- Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Technology and Systems, Ministry of Education & Key Disciplines Laboratory of Novel Micro-Nano Devices and System Technology, College of Optoelectronic Engineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400044, China
| | - Minshan Gan
- Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Technology and Systems, Ministry of Education & Key Disciplines Laboratory of Novel Micro-Nano Devices and System Technology, College of Optoelectronic Engineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400044, China.,International R & D center of Micro-nano Systems and New Materials Technology, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400044, China
| | - Yi Xu
- Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Technology and Systems, Ministry of Education & Key Disciplines Laboratory of Novel Micro-Nano Devices and System Technology, College of Optoelectronic Engineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400044, China. .,International R & D center of Micro-nano Systems and New Materials Technology, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400044, China.
| | - Li Chen
- Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Technology and Systems, Ministry of Education & Key Disciplines Laboratory of Novel Micro-Nano Devices and System Technology, College of Optoelectronic Engineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400044, China.,International R & D center of Micro-nano Systems and New Materials Technology, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400044, China
| | - Shunbo Li
- Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Technology and Systems, Ministry of Education & Key Disciplines Laboratory of Novel Micro-Nano Devices and System Technology, College of Optoelectronic Engineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400044, China. .,International R & D center of Micro-nano Systems and New Materials Technology, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400044, China.
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11
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Lu X, Ai Y. Automatic Microfluidic Cell Wash Platform for Purifying Cells in Suspension: Puriogen. Anal Chem 2022; 94:9424-9433. [PMID: 35658406 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.2c01616] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Cell wash is an essential cell sample preparation procedure to eliminate or minimize interfering substances for various subsequent cell analyses. The commonly used cell wash method is centrifugation which separates cells from other biomolecules in a solution with manual pipetting and has many drawbacks such as being labor-intensive and time-consuming with substantial cell loss and cell clumping. To overcome these issues, a centrifuge-free and automatic cell wash platform for cell purity generation, termed Puriogen, has been developed in this work. Compared with other developed products such as AcouWash, Puriogen can process samples with a high throughput of above 500 μL/min. Puriogen utilizes a uniquely designed inertial microfluidic device to complete the automatic cell wash procedure. One single-cell wash procedure with the Puriogen platform can remove more than 90% ambient proteins and nucleic acids from the cell sample. It can also remove most of the residual fluorescent dye after cell staining to significantly reduce the background signals for subsequent cell analysis. By removing the dead cell debris, it can increase the live cell percentage in the sample by 2-fold. Moreover, the percentage of single-cell population is also increased by 20% because of further disassociation of small-cell aggregates (e.g., doublets and triplets) into singlets. To freely adjust cell concentrations, the Puriogen platform can concentrate cells 5 times in a single flow-through process. The presented Puriogen cell wash solution has broad applications in cell preparation with its excellent simplicity in operation and wash efficiency, especially in single-cell sequencing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoguang Lu
- Pillar of Engineering Product Development, Singapore University of Technology and Design, Singapore 487372, Singapore
| | - Ye Ai
- Pillar of Engineering Product Development, Singapore University of Technology and Design, Singapore 487372, Singapore
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12
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Xiang N, Ni Z. Electricity-free hand-held inertial microfluidic sorter for size-based cell sorting. Talanta 2021; 235:122807. [PMID: 34517664 DOI: 10.1016/j.talanta.2021.122807] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2021] [Revised: 08/07/2021] [Accepted: 08/13/2021] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Conventional batch-top cell sorters are often bulky and expensive, and miniaturized microfluidic sorters available mostly require field generators and electricity-powered pumping systems. Therefore, the development of a low-cost, portable cell sorter that can be used in low resource settings is essential. In this study, we propose such an electricity-free hand-held inertial microfluidic sorter that can be used for the high-efficiency sorting of differently sized cells in a continuous and passive manner. The proposed hand-held sorter is composed of a wheel-shaped all-in-one syringe inertial microfluidic sorter (i-sorter) with flow stabilizer units and two spring-driven mechanical syringe drivers. The release of the compression spring in the mechanical syringe driver through a one-click operation provides the flow driving force. Passive flow stabilizer units in the i-sorter enable flow-rate-sensitive inertial cell separation for the unstable driving flow rate generated by the low-cost mechanical syringe driver. We successfully achieved sorting of differently sized particles and high-efficiency separation of rare tumor cells from the blood using the fabricated prototype. Our hand-held inertial microfluidic cell sorter has many advantages, including low device cost, simple electricity-free operation, compactness, and portability; additionally, samples do not need to be pre-labelled. Therefore, it has potential for use in low-resource settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nan Xiang
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China.
| | - Zhonghua Ni
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China
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13
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Hassanpour Tamrin S, Sanati Nezhad A, Sen A. Label-Free Isolation of Exosomes Using Microfluidic Technologies. ACS NANO 2021; 15:17047-17079. [PMID: 34723478 DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.1c03469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Exosomes are cell-derived structures packaged with lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids. They exist in diverse bodily fluids and are involved in physiological and pathological processes. Although their potential for clinical application as diagnostic and therapeutic tools has been revealed, a huge bottleneck impeding the development of applications in the rapidly burgeoning field of exosome research is an inability to efficiently isolate pure exosomes from other unwanted components present in bodily fluids. To date, several approaches have been proposed and investigated for exosome separation, with the leading candidate being microfluidic technology due to its relative simplicity, cost-effectiveness, precise and fast processing at the microscale, and amenability to automation. Notably, avoiding the need for exosome labeling represents a significant advance in terms of process simplicity, time, and cost as well as protecting the biological activities of exosomes. Despite the exciting progress in microfluidic strategies for exosome isolation and the countless benefits of label-free approaches for clinical applications, current microfluidic platforms for isolation of exosomes are still facing a series of problems and challenges that prevent their use for clinical sample processing. This review focuses on the recent microfluidic platforms developed for label-free isolation of exosomes including those based on sieving, deterministic lateral displacement, field flow, and pinched flow fractionation as well as viscoelastic, acoustic, inertial, electrical, and centrifugal forces. Further, we discuss advantages and disadvantages of these strategies with highlights of current challenges and outlook of label-free microfluidics toward the clinical utility of exosomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Hassanpour Tamrin
- Pharmaceutical Production Research Facility, Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, Schulich School of Engineering, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive N.W., Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada
- Biomedical Engineering Graduate Program, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive N.W., Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada
- BioMEMS and Bioinspired Microfluidic Laboratory, Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Schulich School of Engineering, University of Calgary, CCIT 125, 2500 University Drive N.W., Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Amir Sanati Nezhad
- Biomedical Engineering Graduate Program, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive N.W., Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada
- BioMEMS and Bioinspired Microfluidic Laboratory, Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Schulich School of Engineering, University of Calgary, CCIT 125, 2500 University Drive N.W., Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada
- Center for Bioengineering Research and Education, Schulich School of Engineering, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive N.W., Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Arindom Sen
- Pharmaceutical Production Research Facility, Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, Schulich School of Engineering, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive N.W., Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada
- Biomedical Engineering Graduate Program, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive N.W., Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada
- Center for Bioengineering Research and Education, Schulich School of Engineering, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive N.W., Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada
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14
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Su J, Chen X, Zhu Y, Hu G. Machine learning assisted fast prediction of inertial lift in microchannels. LAB ON A CHIP 2021; 21:2544-2556. [PMID: 33998624 DOI: 10.1039/d1lc00225b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
Inertial effect has been extensively used in manipulating both engineered particles and biocolloids in microfluidic platforms. The design of inertial microfluidic devices largely relies on precise prediction of particle migration that is determined by the inertial lift acting on the particle. In spite of being the only means to accurately obtain the lift forces, direct numerical simulation (DNS) often consumes high computational cost and even becomes impractical when applied to microchannels with complex geometries. Herein, we proposed a fast numerical algorithm in conjunction with machine learning techniques for the analysis and design of inertial microfluidic devices. A database of inertial lift forces was first generated by conducting DNS over a wide range of operating parameters in straight microchannels with three types of cross-sectional shapes, including rectangular, triangular and semicircular shapes. A machine learning assisted model was then developed to gain the inertial lift distribution, by simply specifying the cross-sectional shape, Reynolds number and particle blockage ratio. The resultant inertial lift was integrated into the Lagrangian tracking method to quickly predict the particle trajectories in two types of microchannels in practical devices and yield good agreement with experimental observations. Our database and the associated codes allow researchers to expedite the development of the inertial microfluidic devices for particle manipulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jinghong Su
- Department of Engineering Mechanics, State Key Laboratory of Fluid Power and Mechatronic Systems, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China. and The State Key Laboratory of Nonlinear Mechanics (LNM), Institute of Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China and School of Engineering Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Xiaodong Chen
- School of Aerospace Engineering, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China
| | - Yongzheng Zhu
- The State Key Laboratory of Nonlinear Mechanics (LNM), Institute of Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China and School of Engineering Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Guoqing Hu
- Department of Engineering Mechanics, State Key Laboratory of Fluid Power and Mechatronic Systems, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China.
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15
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Wang S, Liu Z, Wu S, Sun H, Zeng W, Wei J, Fan Z, Sui Z, Liu L, Pan X. Microalgae separation by inertia-enhanced pinched flow fractionation. Electrophoresis 2021; 42:2223-2229. [PMID: 33938005 DOI: 10.1002/elps.202000325] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2020] [Revised: 04/02/2021] [Accepted: 04/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
To improve the accuracy and efficiency of ships' ballast water detection, the separation of microalgae according to size is significant. In this article, a method to separate microalgae based on inertia-enhanced pinched flow fractionation (iPFF) was reported. The method utilized the inertial lift force induced by flow to separate microalgae according to size continuously. The experimental results show that, as the Reynolds number increases, the separation effect becomes better at first, but then stays unchanged. The best separation effect can be obtained when the Reynolds number is 12.3. In addition, with the increase of the flow rate ratio between sheath fluid and microalgae mixture, the separation effect becomes better and the best separation effect can be obtained when the flow rate ratio reaches 10. In this case, the recovery rate of Tetraselmis sp. is about 90%, and the purity is about 86%; the recovery rate of Chlorella sp. is as high as 99%, and the purity is about 99%. After that, the separation effect keeps getting better but very slowly. In general, this study provides a simple method for the separation of microalgae with different sizes, and lays a foundation for the accurate detection of microalgae in the ballast water.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saijie Wang
- School of Science, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian, P. R. China
| | - Zhijian Liu
- College of Marine Engineering, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian, P. R. China
| | - Sen Wu
- College of Marine Engineering, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian, P. R. China
| | - Hongyan Sun
- School of Maritime Economics and Management, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian, P. R. China
| | - Wu Zeng
- College of Marine Engineering, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian, P. R. China
| | - Jintao Wei
- Maritime College, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian, P. R. China
| | - Zixiao Fan
- College of Marine Engineering, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian, P. R. China
| | - Zhuohang Sui
- College of Marine Engineering, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian, P. R. China
| | - Liankun Liu
- College of Marine Engineering, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian, P. R. China
| | - Xinxiang Pan
- College of Marine Engineering, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian, P. R. China.,College of Navigation, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang, P. R. China
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16
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Huang D, Xiang N. Rapid and precise tumor cell separation using the combination of size-dependent inertial and size-independent magnetic methods. LAB ON A CHIP 2021; 21:1409-1417. [PMID: 33605279 DOI: 10.1039/d0lc01223h] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) play a significant role in cancer diagnosis and treatment monitoring. One of the major challenges in isolating and detecting rare CTCs from blood is that white blood cells (WBCs) have a size overlap with the target CTCs. To address this issue, we constructed a three-stage i-Mag device integrated with passive inertial microfluidics and active magnetophoresis, enabling rapid and precise separation of tumor cells from blood. The first-stage spiral inertial sorter was applied to rapidly remove small-sized red blood cells (RBCs), and then the second-stage serpentine inertial focuser and the third-stage magnetic sorter were used for removing the magnetically labeled WBCs size-independently, to significantly purify the captured tumor cells. Then, the separation performance of our i-Mag device was explored. The results indicated rapid and precise separation of breast cancer cells from diluted whole blood at a high separation efficiency of 93.84% and at a high purity of 51.47%. The purity of the collected tumor cells could be further improved to 93.60% when the blood dilution ratio was increased. We also successfully applied our i-Mag device for the isolation and detection of trace tumor cells. Our i-Mag device has numerous advantages, such as enabling high-throughput processing and high-precision separation, requiring easy manufacturing at a low cost, and providing tumor antigen-independent operation. We believe that the i-Mag device has great potential to act as a precise tool for separating various bioparticles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Di Huang
- School of Mechatronic Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116, P.R. China
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17
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Miyagawa A, Okada T. Particle Manipulation with External Field; From Recent Advancement to Perspectives. ANAL SCI 2021; 37:69-78. [PMID: 32921654 DOI: 10.2116/analsci.20sar03] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Physical forces, such as dielectric, magnetic, electric, optical, and acoustic force, provide useful principles for the manipulation of particles, which are impossible or difficult with other approaches. Microparticles, including polymer particles, liquid droplets, and biological cells, can be trapped at a particular position and are also transported to arbitrary locations in an appropriate external physical field. Since the force can be externally controlled by the field strength, we can evaluate physicochemical properties of particles from the shift of the particle location. Most of the manipulation studies are conducted for particles of sub-micrometer or larger dimensions, because the force exerted on nanomaterials or molecules is so weak that their direct manipulation is generally difficult. However, the behavior, interactions, and reactions of such small substances can be indirectly evaluated by observing microparticles, on which the targets are tethered, in a physical field. We review the recent advancements in the manipulation of particles using a physical force and discuss its potentials, advantages, and limitations from fundamental and practical perspectives.
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Affiliation(s)
- Akihisa Miyagawa
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Pure and Applied Science, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8577, Japan
| | - Tetsuo Okada
- Department of Chemistry, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Meguro, Tokyo, 152-8551, Japan.
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18
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Dalili A, Sattati A, Tasnim N, Hoorfar M. Sheath-assisted focusing of microparticles on lab-on-a-chip platforms. Electrophoresis 2020; 41:2188-2196. [PMID: 33043482 DOI: 10.1002/elps.202000247] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2020] [Revised: 10/02/2020] [Accepted: 10/03/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Lab-on-a-chip (LOC) technologies can take advantage of sheath flows for particle/cell focusing before sensing or sorting. The integration of focusing with other microscale manipulation techniques (e.g., sorting) creates a trade-off between the throughput of the device and its performance. Therefore, exploring the effective parameters for cells/particles focusing enables us to improve the desired output of LOC devices. A common configuration for sheath-assisted focusing is Y junctions, which are parametrically studied in this paper. First, a computational model was developed and validated by comparing it with our experimental results. Using COMSOL Multiphysics modeling, the effects of multiple parameters were studied. These parameters include the sheath flow ratio (sheath flow over total flow), width ratio (width of the sheath inlet over the total width), junction angles, and particle size on the focusing width and the distribution of the particles within the focusing region. Then, the numerical data were used to develop two generalized linear models to predict the focusing width of the particles and the standard deviation of the position of the particles. The results showed that the focusing width is greatly impacted by the sheath flow rate ratio. Further, the standard deviation of the position of the particles, which represents the concentration of the particles, is mostly dependent on the flow rate ratio, width ratio, and particle size. Our results provide a better understanding of how the device geometrical and operational factors affect the position of the particles in the development of high-performance on-chip sensing and sorting of both cells and particles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arash Dalili
- School of Engineering, Faculty of Applied Science, The University of British Columbia, Kelowna, Canada
| | - Amirmohammad Sattati
- School of Engineering, Faculty of Applied Science, The University of British Columbia, Kelowna, Canada
- School of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Nishat Tasnim
- School of Engineering, Faculty of Applied Science, The University of British Columbia, Kelowna, Canada
| | - Mina Hoorfar
- School of Engineering, Faculty of Applied Science, The University of British Columbia, Kelowna, Canada
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19
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Lu X, Chow JJM, Koo SH, Tan TY, Jiang B, Ai Y. Enhanced Molecular Diagnosis of Bloodstream Candida Infection with Size-Based Inertial Sorting at Submicron Resolution. Anal Chem 2020; 92:15579-15586. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.0c03718] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoguang Lu
- Pillar of Engineering Product Development, Singapore University of Technology and Design, 487372 Singapore
| | - Joycelyn Jia Ming Chow
- Pillar of Engineering Product Development, Singapore University of Technology and Design, 487372 Singapore
| | - Seok Hwee Koo
- Clinical Trials & Research Unit, Changi General Hospital, 529889 Singapore
| | - Thean Yen Tan
- Clinical Trials & Research Unit, Changi General Hospital, 529889 Singapore
| | - Boran Jiang
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Changi General Hospital, 529889 Singapore
| | - Ye Ai
- Pillar of Engineering Product Development, Singapore University of Technology and Design, 487372 Singapore
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20
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Tang W, Zhu S, Jiang D, Zhu L, Yang J, Xiang N. Channel innovations for inertial microfluidics. LAB ON A CHIP 2020; 20:3485-3502. [PMID: 32910129 DOI: 10.1039/d0lc00714e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/18/2023]
Abstract
Inertial microfluidics has gained significant attention since first being proposed in 2007 owing to the advantages of simplicity, high throughput, precise manipulation, and freedom from an external field. Superior performance in particle focusing, filtering, concentrating, and separating has been demonstrated. As a passive technology, inertial microfluidics technology relies on the unconventional use of fluid inertia in an intermediate Reynolds number range to induce inertial migration and secondary flow, which depend directly on the channel structure, leading to particle migration to the lateral equilibrium position or trapping in a specific cavity. With the advances in micromachining technology, many channel structures have been designed and fabricated in the past decade to explore the fundamentals and applications of inertial microfluidics. However, the channel innovations for inertial microfluidics have not been discussed comprehensively. In this review, the inertial particle manipulations and underlying physics in conventional channels, including straight, spiral, sinusoidal, and expansion-contraction channels, are briefly described. Then, recent innovations in channel structure for inertial microfluidics, especially channel pattern modification and unconventional cross-sectional shape, are reviewed. Finally, the prospects for future channel innovations in inertial microfluidic chips are also discussed. The purpose of this review is to provide guidance for the continued study of innovative channel designs to improve further the accuracy and throughput of inertial microfluidics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenlai Tang
- School of Electrical and Automation Engineering, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of 3D Printing Equipment and Manufacturing, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, 210023, China.
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21
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Voronin DV, Kozlova AA, Verkhovskii RA, Ermakov AV, Makarkin MA, Inozemtseva OA, Bratashov DN. Detection of Rare Objects by Flow Cytometry: Imaging, Cell Sorting, and Deep Learning Approaches. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:E2323. [PMID: 32230871 PMCID: PMC7177904 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21072323] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2019] [Revised: 02/25/2020] [Accepted: 03/25/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Flow cytometry nowadays is among the main working instruments in modern biology paving the way for clinics to provide early, quick, and reliable diagnostics of many blood-related diseases. The major problem for clinical applications is the detection of rare pathogenic objects in patient blood. These objects can be circulating tumor cells, very rare during the early stages of cancer development, various microorganisms and parasites in the blood during acute blood infections. All of these rare diagnostic objects can be detected and identified very rapidly to save a patient's life. This review outlines the main techniques of visualization of rare objects in the blood flow, methods for extraction of such objects from the blood flow for further investigations and new approaches to identify the objects automatically with the modern deep learning methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Denis V. Voronin
- Laboratory of Biomedical Photoacoustics, Saratov State University, 410012 Saratov, Russia
- Department of Physical and Colloid Chemistry, National University of Oil and Gas (Gubkin University), 119991 Moscow, Russia
| | - Anastasiia A. Kozlova
- Laboratory of Biomedical Photoacoustics, Saratov State University, 410012 Saratov, Russia
| | - Roman A. Verkhovskii
- Laboratory of Biomedical Photoacoustics, Saratov State University, 410012 Saratov, Russia
- School of Urbanistics, Civil Engineering and Architecture, Yuri Gagarin State Technical University of Saratov, 410054 Saratov, Russia
| | - Alexey V. Ermakov
- Laboratory of Biomedical Photoacoustics, Saratov State University, 410012 Saratov, Russia
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, I. M. Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University, 119991 Moscow, Russia
| | - Mikhail A. Makarkin
- Laboratory of Biomedical Photoacoustics, Saratov State University, 410012 Saratov, Russia
| | - Olga A. Inozemtseva
- Laboratory of Biomedical Photoacoustics, Saratov State University, 410012 Saratov, Russia
| | - Daniil N. Bratashov
- Laboratory of Biomedical Photoacoustics, Saratov State University, 410012 Saratov, Russia
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22
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Park BS, Kye HG, Kim TH, Lee JM, Ahrberg CD, Cho EM, Yang SI, Chung BG. Continuous separation of fungal spores in a microfluidic flow focusing device. Analyst 2019; 144:4962-4971. [PMID: 31322144 DOI: 10.1039/c9an00905a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
The research of fungi is of great importance in a number of fields, such as environmental and healthcare studies. While there are a large number of optical and molecular methods available for characterization and identification of fungi and their spores, their isolation is still conducted using slow and labor-intensive methods. Here, we develop a microfluidic device for the continuous separation of fungal spores from other eukaryotic cells. The spores were separated through the microfluidic device by expanding pinched flow fractionation (PFF) containing the spores, achieving a spatial separation perpendicular to the flow direction according to the spore size. Further branch flow fractionation (BFF) and co-flow of a Newtonian and viscoelastic fluid were used to enhance the separation performance. Using this microfluidic device, we demonstrated the separation of two different types of fungal spores and further separation of fungal spores from eukaryotic cells with a separation efficiency of above 90%. Compared to the existing conventional methods, our microfluidic flow focusing device requires little manual handling and uses small amounts of samples without any pre-treatment steps of the samples.
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Affiliation(s)
- Byeong Seon Park
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Sogang University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
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23
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Zhou J, Mukherjee P, Gao H, Luan Q, Papautsky I. Label-free microfluidic sorting of microparticles. APL Bioeng 2019; 3:041504. [PMID: 31832577 PMCID: PMC6906121 DOI: 10.1063/1.5120501] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2019] [Accepted: 11/21/2019] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Massive growth of the microfluidics field has triggered numerous advances in focusing, separating, ordering, concentrating, and mixing of microparticles. Microfluidic systems capable of performing these functions are rapidly finding applications in industrial, environmental, and biomedical fields. Passive and label-free methods are one of the major categories of such systems that have received enormous attention owing to device operational simplicity and low costs. With new platforms continuously being proposed, our aim here is to provide an updated overview of the state of the art for passive label-free microparticle separation, with emphasis on performance and operational conditions. In addition to the now common separation approaches using Newtonian flows, such as deterministic lateral displacement, pinched flow fractionation, cross-flow filtration, hydrodynamic filtration, and inertial microfluidics, we also discuss separation approaches using non-Newtonian, viscoelastic flow. We then highlight the newly emerging approach based on shear-induced diffusion, which enables direct processing of complex samples such as untreated whole blood. Finally, we hope that an improved understanding of label-free passive sorting approaches can lead to sophisticated and useful platforms toward automation in industrial, environmental, and biomedical fields.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian Zhou
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60607, USA
| | - Prithviraj Mukherjee
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60607, USA
| | - Hua Gao
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60607, USA
| | - Qiyue Luan
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60607, USA
| | - Ian Papautsky
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60607, USA
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Xiang N, Li Q, Shi Z, Zhou C, Jiang F, Han Y, Ni Z. Low-cost multi-core inertial microfluidic centrifuge for high-throughput cell concentration. Electrophoresis 2019; 41:875-882. [PMID: 31705675 DOI: 10.1002/elps.201900385] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2019] [Revised: 10/25/2019] [Accepted: 11/05/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
We developed a low-cost multi-core inertial microfluidic centrifuge (IM-centrifuge) to achieve a continuous-flow cell/particle concentration at a throughput of up to 20 mL/min. To lower the cost of our IM-centrifuge, we clamped a disposable multilayer film-based inertial microfluidic (MFIM) chip with two reusable plastic housings. The key MFIM chip was fabricated in low-cost materials by stacking different polymer-film channel layers and double-sided tape. To increase processing throughput, multiplexing spiral inertial microfluidic channels were integrated within an all-in-one MFIM chip, and a novel sample distribution strategy was employed to equally distribute the sample into each channel layer. Then, we characterized the focusing performance in the MFIM chip over a wide flow-rate range. The experimental results showed that our IM-centrifuge was able to focus various-sized particles/cells to achieve volume reduction. The sample distribution strategy also effectively ensured identical focusing and concentration performances in different cores. Finally, our IM-centrifuge was successfully applied to concentrate microalgae cells with irregular shapes and highly polydisperse sizes. Thus, our IM-centrifuge holds the potential to be employed as a low-cost, high-throughput centrifuge for disposable use in low-resource settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nan Xiang
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, P. R. China
| | - Qiao Li
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, P. R. China
| | - Zhiguo Shi
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, P. R. China
| | - Chenguang Zhou
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, P. R. China
| | - Fengtao Jiang
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, P. R. China
| | - Yu Han
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, P. R. China
| | - Zhonghua Ni
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, P. R. China
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25
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Xiang N, Wang J, Li Q, Han Y, Huang D, Ni Z. Precise Size-Based Cell Separation via the Coupling of Inertial Microfluidics and Deterministic Lateral Displacement. Anal Chem 2019; 91:10328-10334. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.9b02863] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Nan Xiang
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China
| | - Jie Wang
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China
| | - Qiao Li
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China
| | - Yu Han
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China
| | - Di Huang
- School of Mechatronic Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou, 221116, China
| | - Zhonghua Ni
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China
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26
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Zhang K, Ren Y, Tao Y, Liu W, Jiang T, Jiang H. Efficient Micro/Nanoparticle Concentration using Direct Current-Induced Thermal Buoyancy Convection for Multiple Liquid Media. Anal Chem 2019; 91:4457-4465. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.8b05105] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Kailiang Zhang
- School of Mechatronics Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001, P. R. China
| | - Yukun Ren
- School of Mechatronics Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001, P. R. China
- State Key Laboratory of Robotics and System, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001, P. R. China
- State Key Laboratory of Nonlinear Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, P. R. China
| | - Ye Tao
- School of Mechatronics Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001, P. R. China
| | - Weiyu Liu
- School of Electronics and Control Engineering, Chang’an University, Xi’an, Shanxi 710064, P. R. China
| | - Tianyi Jiang
- School of Mechatronics Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001, P. R. China
| | - Hongyuan Jiang
- School of Mechatronics Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001, P. R. China
- State Key Laboratory of Robotics and System, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001, P. R. China
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27
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Dalili A, Samiei E, Hoorfar M. A review of sorting, separation and isolation of cells and microbeads for biomedical applications: microfluidic approaches. Analyst 2019; 144:87-113. [DOI: 10.1039/c8an01061g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 145] [Impact Index Per Article: 29.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
We have reviewed the microfluidic approaches for cell/particle isolation and sorting, and extensively explained the mechanism behind each method.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arash Dalili
- The University of British
- School of Engineering
- Kelowna
- Canada V1 V 1 V7
| | - Ehsan Samiei
- University of Victoria
- Department of Mechanical Engineering
- Victoria
- Canada
| | - Mina Hoorfar
- The University of British
- School of Engineering
- Kelowna
- Canada V1 V 1 V7
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28
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Shi X, Liu L, Cao W, Zhu G, Tan W. A Dean-flow-coupled interfacial viscoelastic fluid for microparticle separation applied in a cell smear method. Analyst 2019; 144:5934-5946. [DOI: 10.1039/c9an01070j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
An interfacial microfluidic device realizing cell separation and washing simultaneously and efficiently.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xin Shi
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology
- Tianjin University
- Tianjin 300350
- China
| | - Liyan Liu
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology
- Tianjin University
- Tianjin 300350
- China
| | - Wenfeng Cao
- Tianjin Tumor Hospital
- Tianjin Medical University
- Tianjin 300070
- China
| | - Guorui Zhu
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology
- Tianjin University
- Tianjin 300350
- China
| | - Wei Tan
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology
- Tianjin University
- Tianjin 300350
- China
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29
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Alam MK, Koomson E, Zou H, Yi C, Li CW, Xu T, Yang M. Recent advances in microfluidic technology for manipulation and analysis of biological cells (2007–2017). Anal Chim Acta 2018; 1044:29-65. [DOI: 10.1016/j.aca.2018.06.054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2018] [Revised: 06/19/2018] [Accepted: 06/19/2018] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
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30
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Tian F, Cai L, Chang J, Li S, Liu C, Li T, Sun J. Label-free isolation of rare tumor cells from untreated whole blood by interfacial viscoelastic microfluidics. LAB ON A CHIP 2018; 18:3436-3445. [PMID: 30328446 DOI: 10.1039/c8lc00700d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Label-free, high-throughput, and efficient separation and enrichment of rare tumor cells, such as circulating tumor cells (CTCs), from untreated whole blood is a challenging task, owing to extremely rare events of CTCs and an enormous amount of blood cells. Current strategies for CTC separation always require pre-processing steps including lysis of blood or labeling of CTCs, leading to loss or damage of CTCs. Here, we report an interfacial viscoelastic microfluidic system for size-selective separation of tumor cells directly from whole blood, without the need of cell labeling and other treatments. The sharp flow interfaces between the sample flow and viscoelastic flow (0.05% PEO solutions) in the straight microchannel allow for the penetration of large tumor cells while blocking small blood cells, through exploiting the competition between the inertial lift forces and interfacial elastic lift forces. The microfluidic paradigm does not involve external force fields or complicated fabrication procedures, while achieving 95.1% separation efficiency and 77.5% recovery rate for isolating as few as 50 tumor cells in 1 mL whole blood. The viability of tumor cells after separation is ∼100%, and normal proliferation of separated tumor cells is observed. The interfacial viscoelastic microfluidics holds great promise to facilitate the fundamental and clinical studies of CTCs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fei Tian
- School of Mechanical Engineering, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin 300401, China.
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31
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Chen Q, Li D, Zielinski J, Kozubowski L, Lin J, Wang M, Xuan X. Yeast cell fractionation by morphology in dilute ferrofluids. BIOMICROFLUIDICS 2017; 11:064102. [PMID: 29152030 PMCID: PMC5680049 DOI: 10.1063/1.5006445] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2017] [Accepted: 10/26/2017] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
Morphology is an important particle (both biological and synthetic) property and potentially a useful marker for label-free particle separation. We present in this work a continuous-flow morphology-based fractionation of a heterogeneous mixture of drug-treated yeast cells in dilute ferrofluids. Such a diamagnetic cell separation technique utilizes the negative magnetophoretic motion to direct pre-focused yeast cells to morphology-dependent streamlines in a laminar flow. The separation performance is evaluated by comparing the exiting positions of the four classified groups of yeast cells: Singles, Doubles, Triples, and Others. We also develop a three-dimensional numerical model to simulate the separation process by the use of the experimentally determined correction factor for each group of non-spherical cells. The determining factors in this separation are studied both experimentally and numerically, the results of which show a reasonable agreement.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Di Li
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina 29634-0921, USA
| | - Jessica Zielinski
- Department of Genetics and Biochemistry, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina 29634-0318, USA
| | - Lukasz Kozubowski
- Department of Genetics and Biochemistry, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina 29634-0318, USA
| | - Jianhan Lin
- MOA Key Laboratory of Agricultural Information Acquisition Technology (Beijing), China Agricultural University, Beijing 10083, China
| | - Maohua Wang
- MOA Key Laboratory of Agricultural Information Acquisition Technology (Beijing), China Agricultural University, Beijing 10083, China
| | - Xiangchun Xuan
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina 29634-0921, USA
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32
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Tian F, Zhang W, Cai L, Li S, Hu G, Cong Y, Liu C, Li T, Sun J. Microfluidic co-flow of Newtonian and viscoelastic fluids for high-resolution separation of microparticles. LAB ON A CHIP 2017; 17:3078-3085. [PMID: 28805872 DOI: 10.1039/c7lc00671c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
The microfluidic passive control of microparticles largely relies on the hydrodynamic effects of the carrier media such as Newtonian fluids and viscoelastic fluids. Yet the viscoelastic/Newtonian interfacial effect has been scarcely investigated, especially for high-resolution particle separation. Here we report a microfluidic co-flow of Newtonian (water or PBS) and viscoelastic fluids (PEO) for the size-dependent separation of microparticles. The co-flow condition generates a stable viscoelastic/Newtonian interface, giving rise to the wall-directed elastic lift forces that compete with the center-directed lift forces, and efficiently hinders the migration of microparticles from the Newtonian to the viscoelastic fluid in a size-dependent manner. An almost complete separation of a binary mixture of 1 μm and 2 μm polystyrene particles is achieved by the co-flow of water and a very dilute PEO solution (100 ppm), whereas the sole use of water or PEO could not lead to an efficient separation. This co-flow microfluidic system is also applied for the separation of Staphylococcus aureus (1 μm) from platelets (2-3 μm) with >90% efficiencies and purities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fei Tian
- School of Mechanical Engineering, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin 300401, China.
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33
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Chen Q, Li D, Lin J, Wang M, Xuan X. Simultaneous Separation and Washing of Nonmagnetic Particles in an Inertial Ferrofluid/Water Coflow. Anal Chem 2017; 89:6915-6920. [PMID: 28548482 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.7b01608] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Magnetic fluids (e.g., paramagnetic solutions and ferrofluids) have been increasingly used for label-free separation of nonmagnetic particles in microfluidic devices. Their biocompatibility, however, becomes a concern in high-throughput or large-volume applications. One way to potentially resolve this issue is resuspending the particles that are separated in a magnetic fluid immediately into a biocompatible buffer. We demonstrate herein the proof-of-principle of the first integration of negative magnetophoresis and inertial focusing for a simultaneous separation and washing of nonmagnetic particles in coflowing ferrofluid and water streams. The two operations take place in parallel in a simple T-shaped rectangular microchannel with a nearby permanent magnet. We find that the larger and smaller particles' exiting positions (and hence their separation distance) in the sheath water and ferrofluid suspension, respectively, vary with the total flow rate or the flow rate ratio between the two streams.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qi Chen
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Clemson University , Clemson, South Carolina 29634-0921, United States.,MOA Key Laboratory of Agricultural Information Acquisition Technology (Beijing), China Agricultural University , Beijing 10083, China
| | - Di Li
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Clemson University , Clemson, South Carolina 29634-0921, United States
| | - Jianhan Lin
- MOA Key Laboratory of Agricultural Information Acquisition Technology (Beijing), China Agricultural University , Beijing 10083, China
| | - Maohua Wang
- MOA Key Laboratory of Agricultural Information Acquisition Technology (Beijing), China Agricultural University , Beijing 10083, China
| | - Xiangchun Xuan
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Clemson University , Clemson, South Carolina 29634-0921, United States
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34
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Li D, Lu X, Xuan X. Viscoelastic Separation of Particles by Size in Straight Rectangular Microchannels: A Parametric Study for a Refined Understanding. Anal Chem 2016; 88:12303-12309. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.6b03501] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Di Li
- Department of Mechanical
Engineering, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina 29634-0921, United States
| | - Xinyu Lu
- Department of Mechanical
Engineering, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina 29634-0921, United States
| | - Xiangchun Xuan
- Department of Mechanical
Engineering, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina 29634-0921, United States
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35
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Deformability-Based Electrokinetic Particle Separation. MICROMACHINES 2016; 7:mi7090170. [PMID: 30404343 PMCID: PMC6189855 DOI: 10.3390/mi7090170] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2016] [Revised: 09/05/2016] [Accepted: 09/07/2016] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
Deformability is an effective property that can be used in the separation of colloidal particles and cells. In this study, a microfluidic device is proposed and tested numerically for the sorting of deformable particles of various degrees. The separation process is numerically investigated by a direct numerical simulation of the fluid–particle–electric field interactions with an arbitrary Lagrangian–Eulerian finite-element method. The separation performance is investigated with the shear modulus of particles, the strength of the applied electric field, and the design of the contracted microfluidic devices as the main parameters. The results show that the particles with different shear moduli take different shapes and trajectories when passing through a microchannel contraction, enabling the separation of particles based on their difference in deformability.
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36
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Li D, Lu X, Song Y, Wang J, Li D, Xuan X. Sheathless electrokinetic particle separation in a bifurcating microchannel. BIOMICROFLUIDICS 2016; 10:054104. [PMID: 27703590 PMCID: PMC5035298 DOI: 10.1063/1.4962875] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2016] [Accepted: 09/04/2016] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
Particle separation has found practical applications in many areas from industry to academia. Current electrokinetic particle separation techniques primarily rely on dielectrophoresis, where the electric field gradients are generated by either active microelectrodes or inert micro-insulators. We develop herein a new type of electrokinetic method to continuously separate particles in a bifurcating microchannel. This sheath-free separation makes use of the inherent wall-induced electrical lift to focus particles towards the centerline of the main-branch and then deflect them to size-dependent flow paths in each side-branch. A theoretical model is also developed to understand such a size-based separation, which simulates the experimental observations with a good agreement. This electric field-driven sheathless separation can potentially be operated in a parallel or cascade mode to increase the particle throughput or resolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Di Li
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Clemson University , Clemson, South Carolina 29634-0921, USA
| | - Xinyu Lu
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Clemson University , Clemson, South Carolina 29634-0921, USA
| | - Yongxin Song
- College of Marine Engineering, Dalian Maritime University , Dalian 116026, China
| | - Junsheng Wang
- College of Information Science and Technology, Dalian Maritime University , Dalian 116026, China
| | - Dongqing Li
- Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering, University of Waterloo , Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
| | - Xiangchun Xuan
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Clemson University , Clemson, South Carolina 29634-0921, USA
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37
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Yuan D, Zhang J, Yan S, Peng G, Zhao Q, Alici G, Du H, Li W. Investigation of particle lateral migration in sample-sheath flow of viscoelastic fluid and Newtonian fluid. Electrophoresis 2016; 37:2147-55. [DOI: 10.1002/elps.201600102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2016] [Revised: 04/15/2016] [Accepted: 04/17/2016] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Dan Yuan
- School of Mechanical, Materials and Mechatronic Engineering; University of Wollongong; Wollongong NSW Australia
| | - Jun Zhang
- School of Mechanical, Materials and Mechatronic Engineering; University of Wollongong; Wollongong NSW Australia
| | - Sheng Yan
- School of Mechanical, Materials and Mechatronic Engineering; University of Wollongong; Wollongong NSW Australia
| | - Gangrou Peng
- School of Mechanical, Materials and Mechatronic Engineering; University of Wollongong; Wollongong NSW Australia
| | - Qianbin Zhao
- School of Mechanical, Materials and Mechatronic Engineering; University of Wollongong; Wollongong NSW Australia
| | - Gursel Alici
- School of Mechanical, Materials and Mechatronic Engineering; University of Wollongong; Wollongong NSW Australia
| | - Hejun Du
- School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering; Nanyang Technological University; Singapore
| | - Weihua Li
- School of Mechanical, Materials and Mechatronic Engineering; University of Wollongong; Wollongong NSW Australia
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38
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Lu X, Xuan X. Elasto-Inertial Pinched Flow Fractionation for Continuous Shape-Based Particle Separation. Anal Chem 2015; 87:11523-30. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.5b03321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Xinyu Lu
- Department of Mechanical
Engineering, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina 29634-0921, United States
| | - Xiangchun Xuan
- Department of Mechanical
Engineering, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina 29634-0921, United States
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39
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Lu X, Xuan X. Continuous Microfluidic Particle Separation via Elasto-Inertial Pinched Flow Fractionation. Anal Chem 2015; 87:6389-96. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.5b01432] [Citation(s) in RCA: 80] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Xinyu Lu
- Department
of Mechanical
Engineering, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina 29634-0921, United States
| | - Xiangchun Xuan
- Department
of Mechanical
Engineering, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina 29634-0921, United States
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