Paper-based and capillary-driven microfluidics platforms for allergy tests

过敏是一个普遍存在的问题，影响着6000多万北美人。标准的测试是皮肤点刺法，医生将各种过敏原放在皮肤上，用针刺破皮肤，诱发过敏反应。反应可能是严重刺激性的肿胀和瘙痒。许多患者（尤其是儿童）发现皮肤点刺试验是侵入性的，不舒服，有些人不适合。这项研究将有助于开发一种安全、简单和可靠的皮肤贴片，确保患者尽可能快速、舒适地得到诊断，这将增加测试，并让患者了解他们的过敏状况。这项研究的目的是利用毛细管驱动的微流体策略，如基于纸和线的装置和电化学，开发一种皮肤贴片，可以由我们的工业合作伙伴ExVivo Labs Inc.商业化。这些策略将有助于分离和浓缩患者样本中发现的化学物质，从而即使在少量样本液体中也能检测过敏状况。患者样本将是间质液，可以通过应用于皮肤的一小片微针无痛地收集。样本将被吸入我们开发的微流控装置，并产生视觉信号，以指示患者是否对测试的过敏原过敏。该研究将与加拿大行业合作伙伴ExVivo Labs合作进行，他们将获得必要的知识，专业知识和资源，以克服与开发过敏测试皮肤贴片相关的挑战，从而开发出成功的商业产品。拟议的CRD赠款的研究成果将能够进一步扩大，提供更多的就业机会，并增加通过用户友好的诊断测试产品扩大加拿大经济的可能性。

Allergies are a pervasive problem that affects more than 60 million North Americans. The standard test is the skin prick method, where a doctor places various allergens on the skin and pricks the skin with a needle to induce an allergic reaction. The reaction can be severely irritating with both swelling and itching. Many patients (especially children) find the skin prick test invasive and uncomfortable, and some are not suitable candidates. The proposed research will contribute to the development of a safe, simple and certain skin patch that ensures patients are diagnosed as quickly and comfortably as possible, which will increase testing and keep patients informed of their allergic conditions.The objective of the proposed research is to utilize capillary-driven microfluidic strategies, such as flow through paper and thread-based devices and electrochemistry, to develop a skin patch that can be commercialized by our industrial partner, ExVivo Labs Inc. The strategies will help to isolate and concentrate the chemicals found in patient samples to enable detection of allergic conditions even in small volumes of sample fluid. The patient samples will be interstitial fluid, which can be collected painlessly through a small patch of microneedles applied to the skin. The sample will be wicked into the microfluidic device we develop and a visual signal will be generated to indicate if the patient is allergic to the allergens being tested or not.The research will be undertaken in collaboration with a Canadian industry partner, ExVivo Labs, who will gain access to the knowledge, expertise, and resources necessary to overcome the challenges associated with developing their allergy test skin patch, and as a result to develop a successful commercial product. The research outcomes from the proposed CRD Grant would enable additional expansion providing more jobs and increasing the likelihood for expanding the Canadian economy with user-friendly diagnostic test products.