I-Corps: Microwave flow cytometer for real-time monitoring of fermentation

这个i-Corps项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是为酿酒商、蒸馏厂、生物燃料生产商和生物制药公司提供新技术，以提高产量、降低成本并将潜在损失降至最低。微波流式细胞仪(MicroFC)技术有望在不使用昂贵试剂的情况下，准确测量细胞密度，监测细胞活力，并高通量、实时检测微生物污染。长期和持续的监测过程也需要最少的人为干预。因此，该技术有望为用户提供准确和即时的信息，用于过程控制和优化以及早期污染检测。它可以帮助提高产量和产品质量，同时节省水、能源和人力，同时促进新的生物制造工艺和新产品的发现。这个i-Corps项目将通过调查使用生物细胞制造产品的公司的需求来探索微波流式细胞仪(MicroFC)技术的市场潜力。MicroFC基于新的微波干涉仪技术，该技术包括新的调谐机制，以覆盖宽带频率范围以实现特异性并允许高灵敏度传感。干涉仪系统中使用的是嵌入微流体的微波传感器，通过传感器传输单个细胞，测量酵母细胞和细菌的多个参数，包括细胞密度(细胞/毫升)、体积和生理状态(活力和铺垫细胞)。这种测量方法不需要试剂，而且是无创的。MicroFC有望实现低成本和易用的在线细胞监测，这将填补行业和学术界的仪器空白。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is in providing new techniques for brewers, distillers, biofuel producers, and biopharmaceutical companies to increase yield, reduce cost and minimize potential losses. Microwave flow cytometry (microFC) technology is promising to accurately measure cell density, monitor cell viability, and detect microorganism contaminations at high throughput and in real time without the use of expensive reagents. The long term and continuous monitoring process also requires minimal human intervention. Thus, the technology is promising to provide its users precise and instantaneous information for process control and optimization as well as early contamination detection. It can help improve yield and product quality while save water, energy and manpower, while promoting discoveries of new biomanufacturing processes and new products.This I-Corps project will explore the market potential for microwave flow cytometry (microFC) technology by investigating the needs of companies that use biological cells to manufacture products. microFC is based on novel microwave interferometer technology, which includes novel tuning mechanisms to cover broadband frequency ranges for specificity and allows for high sensitivity sensing. Employed in the interferometer system is a microwave sensor with embedded microfluidics that transport individual cells through the sensor, measuring multiple parameters of yeast cells and bacteria including cell density (cells/mL), volume, and physiological state (viability and bedding cells). The measurements are reagent-free and noninvasive. microFC's are expected to enable low cost and easy-to-use online cell monitoring, which will fill an instrumentation gap in both industry and academia.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.