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Lan M, Ren Z, Cheng C, Li G, Yang F. Small extracellular vesicles detection using dielectrophoresis-based microfluidic chip for diagnosis of breast cancer. Biosens Bioelectron 2024; 259:116382. [PMID: 38749284 DOI: 10.1016/j.bios.2024.116382] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/26/2023] [Revised: 03/22/2024] [Accepted: 05/11/2024] [Indexed: 06/03/2024]
Abstract
Small extracellular vesicles (sEVs) reflect the genotype and phenotype of original cells and are biomarkers for early diagnosis and treatment monitoring of tumors. Yet, their small size and low density make them difficult to isolate and detect in body fluid samples. This study proposes a novel acDEP-Exo chip filled with transparent micro-beads, which formed a non-uniform electrical field, and finally achieved rapid, sensitive, and tunable sEVs capture and detection. The method requires only 20-50 μL of sample, achieved a limit of detection (LOD) of 161 particles/μL, and can detect biomarkers within 13 min. We applied the chip to analyze the two markers of sEV's EpCAM and MUC1 in clinical plasma samples from breast cancer (BC) patients and healthy volunteers and found that the combined evaluation of sEV's biomarkers has extremely high sensitivity, specificity and accuracy. The present study introduces an alternative approach to sEVs isolation and detection, has a great potential in real-time sEVs-based liquid biopsy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mei Lan
- Key Laboratory for Molecular Enzymology and Engineering of Ministry of Education, School of Life Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, 130012, China
| | - Ze Ren
- Key Laboratory for Molecular Enzymology and Engineering of Ministry of Education, School of Life Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, 130012, China
| | - Cheng Cheng
- Key Laboratory for Molecular Enzymology and Engineering of Ministry of Education, School of Life Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, 130012, China
| | - Guiying Li
- Key Laboratory for Molecular Enzymology and Engineering of Ministry of Education, School of Life Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, 130012, China.
| | - Fang Yang
- Key Laboratory for Molecular Enzymology and Engineering of Ministry of Education, School of Life Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, 130012, China.
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Marassi V, Giordani S, Placci A, Punzo A, Caliceti C, Zattoni A, Reschiglian P, Roda B, Roda A. Emerging Microfluidic Tools for Simultaneous Exosomes and Cargo Biosensing in Liquid Biopsy: New Integrated Miniaturized FFF-Assisted Approach for Colon Cancer Diagnosis. SENSORS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2023; 23:9432. [PMID: 38067805 PMCID: PMC10708636 DOI: 10.3390/s23239432] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2023] [Revised: 11/18/2023] [Accepted: 11/21/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023]
Abstract
The early-stage diagnosis of cancer is a crucial clinical need. The inadequacies of surgery tissue biopsy have prompted a transition to a less invasive profiling of molecular biomarkers from biofluids, known as liquid biopsy. Exosomes are phospholipid bilayer vesicles present in many biofluids with a biologically active cargo, being responsible for cell-to-cell communication in biological systems. An increase in their excretion and changes in their cargo are potential diagnostic biomarkers for an array of diseases, including cancer, and they constitute a promising analyte for liquid biopsy. The number of exosomes released, the morphological properties, the membrane composition, and their content are highly related to the physiological and pathological states. The main analytical challenge to establishing liquid biopsy in clinical practice is the development of biosensors able to detect intact exosomes concentration and simultaneously analyze specific membrane biomarkers and those contained in their cargo. Before analysis, exosomes also need to be isolated from biological fluids. Microfluidic systems can address several issues present in conventional methods (i.e., ultracentrifugation, size-exclusion chromatography, ultrafiltration, and immunoaffinity capture), which are time-consuming and require a relatively high amount of sample; in addition, they can be easily integrated with biosensing systems. A critical review of emerging microfluidic-based devices for integrated biosensing approaches and following the major analytical need for accurate diagnostics is presented here. The design of a new miniaturized biosensing system is also reported. A device based on hollow-fiber flow field-flow fractionation followed by luminescence-based immunoassay is applied to isolate intact exosomes and characterize their cargo as a proof of concept for colon cancer diagnosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valentina Marassi
- Department of Chemistry “G. Ciamician”, University of Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy; (V.M.); (S.G.); (A.P.); (A.Z.); (P.R.)
- National Institute of Biostructure and Biosystems (INBB), 00136 Rome, Italy; (A.P.); (C.C.)
- byFlow srl, 40129 Bologna, Italy
| | - Stefano Giordani
- Department of Chemistry “G. Ciamician”, University of Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy; (V.M.); (S.G.); (A.P.); (A.Z.); (P.R.)
| | - Anna Placci
- Department of Chemistry “G. Ciamician”, University of Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy; (V.M.); (S.G.); (A.P.); (A.Z.); (P.R.)
| | - Angela Punzo
- National Institute of Biostructure and Biosystems (INBB), 00136 Rome, Italy; (A.P.); (C.C.)
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, 40138 Bologna, Italy
| | - Cristiana Caliceti
- National Institute of Biostructure and Biosystems (INBB), 00136 Rome, Italy; (A.P.); (C.C.)
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, 40138 Bologna, Italy
- Interdepartmental Centre for Renewable Sources, Environment, Sea and Energy—CIRI FRAME, University of Bologna, 40131 Bologna, Italy
- Interdepartmental Centre for Industrial Agrofood Research—CIRI Agrofood, University of Bologna, 47521 Cesena, Italy
| | - Andrea Zattoni
- Department of Chemistry “G. Ciamician”, University of Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy; (V.M.); (S.G.); (A.P.); (A.Z.); (P.R.)
- National Institute of Biostructure and Biosystems (INBB), 00136 Rome, Italy; (A.P.); (C.C.)
- byFlow srl, 40129 Bologna, Italy
| | - Pierluigi Reschiglian
- Department of Chemistry “G. Ciamician”, University of Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy; (V.M.); (S.G.); (A.P.); (A.Z.); (P.R.)
- National Institute of Biostructure and Biosystems (INBB), 00136 Rome, Italy; (A.P.); (C.C.)
- byFlow srl, 40129 Bologna, Italy
| | - Barbara Roda
- Department of Chemistry “G. Ciamician”, University of Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy; (V.M.); (S.G.); (A.P.); (A.Z.); (P.R.)
- National Institute of Biostructure and Biosystems (INBB), 00136 Rome, Italy; (A.P.); (C.C.)
- byFlow srl, 40129 Bologna, Italy
| | - Aldo Roda
- Department of Chemistry “G. Ciamician”, University of Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy; (V.M.); (S.G.); (A.P.); (A.Z.); (P.R.)
- National Institute of Biostructure and Biosystems (INBB), 00136 Rome, Italy; (A.P.); (C.C.)
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Advancement and obstacles in microfluidics-based isolation of extracellular vesicles. Anal Bioanal Chem 2023; 415:1265-1285. [PMID: 36284018 PMCID: PMC9928917 DOI: 10.1007/s00216-022-04362-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2022] [Revised: 09/19/2022] [Accepted: 09/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
Abstract
There is a great need for techniques which enable reproducible separation of extracellular vesicles (EVs) from biofluids with high recovery, purity and throughput. The development of new techniques for isolation of EVs from minute sample volumes is instrumental in enabling EV-based biomarker profiling in large biobank cohorts and paves the way to improved diagnostic profiles in precision medicine. Recent advances in microfluidics-based devices offer a toolbox for separating EVs from small sample volumes. Microfluidic devices that have been used in EV isolation utilise different fundamental principles and rely largely on benefits of scaling laws as the biofluid processing is miniaturised to chip level. Here, we review the progress in the practicality and performance of both passive devices (such as mechanical filtering and hydrodynamic focusing) and active devices (using magnetic, electric or acoustic fields). As it stands, many microfluidic devices isolate intact EV populations at higher purities than centrifugation, precipitation or size-exclusion chromatography. However, this comes at a cost. We address challenges (in particular low throughput, clogging risks and ability to process biofluids) and highlight the need for more improvements in microfluidic devices. Finally, we conclude that there is a need to refine and standardise these lab-on-a-chip techniques to meet the growing interest in the diagnostic and therapeutic value of purified EVs.
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Comparative application of microfluidic systems in circulating tumor cells and extracellular vesicles isolation; a review. Biomed Microdevices 2022; 25:4. [PMID: 36574057 DOI: 10.1007/s10544-022-00644-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Cancer is a prevalent cause of mortality globally, where early diagnosis leads to a reduced death rate. Many researchers' common strategies are based on personalized diagnostic methods with rapid response and high accuracy. This technology was developed by applying liquid biopsy instead of tissue biopsies in the case of tumor cell analysis that facilitates point-of-care testing for cancer diagnosis and treatment. In recent years, significant progress in microfluidic technology led to the successful isolation, analysis, and monitoring of cancer biomarkers in body liquid biopsy with merits like high sensitivity and flexibility, low sample usage, cost effective, and the ability of automation. The most critical and informative markers in body liquid refer to circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and extracellular vesicles derived from tumors (EVs) that carry various biomarkers in their structure (DNAs, proteins, and RNAs) as compared to ctDNA. The released ctDNA has a low half-life and decreased sensitivity due to large amounts of nucleic acid in serum. This review intends to highlight different cancer screening tests with a particular focus on the details regarding the only FDA-approved and awaiting technologies for FDA clearance to isolate CTCs and EVs based on microfluidics systems.
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