PFI:AIR - TT: Blood Typing Device without Reagents: Sensing Electrodes to Replace Optics

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This PFI: AIR Technology Translation project focuses on translating electrokinetic lab-on-a-chip blood typing technology to fill the need for rapid blood typing at blood donor sites and in disaster relief situations. The project will result in a proof-of-concept blood typing microdevice to simultaneously detect cell signatures without a microscope. This blood typing microdevice has the following unique features: portability, rapid ABO-Rh type identification, no reagents, simultaneous hematocrit determination, and small blood volumes. These features provide the following advantages: time- and cost-savings, increased efficiency, longer shelf life, and better reliability when compared to paper-based blood agglutination kits, the leading competitor in this market space. While most electrokinetic/microfluidic devices fit on handheld microscope slides, the supporting infrastructure to operate the device comprises a considerable cost and space footprint. This project addresses this technology gap by developing sensing electrodes to replace the optical microscope?s role of recording red blood cell responses in the microdevice, facilitating a key step in the transition from research discovery toward a user-friendly commercial application. This blood typing microdevice is important because trauma centers and hospitals rely extensively on blood donations provided by blood banks across the U.S to save lives. There are currently 84 million blood typings per year in the U.S., with approximately 16 million donations annually. Processing costs approach $200 per pint of blood, so the ability to pre-screen donors by blood type and selectively direct the donation process (i.e. plasma, red cells) would result in significant savings and bolster our declining blood supply. This portable technology could also be translated to remote geographical locations for disaster relief applications. In addition, the potential initial economic impact is expected to be up to $12 million per year, which will contribute to the U.S. competitiveness in healthcare including trauma, blood therapies, and surgeries.