Nanoliter Lab-on-a-Chip for Blood Diagnostics

描述（由申请人提供）：对极低出生体重的早产儿进行小容量输血是一个重要的原因。发现用于诊断的采血量与随后的输血量之间存在直接相关性。在新生儿中，可能没有足够的血液样本来进行所有必要的检查。在现场（事故、灾难、战场等）对血液样本进行常规实验室分析是不切实际的。手持式、自动化、廉价、多分析物和多用途血液化学分析仪将有助于将血液分析量从毫升减少到纳升，减少进一步输血的需要，并使分析仪在护理点（诊所、手术室和急诊室、重症监护病房和现场）可用。在第一阶段，我们已经成功地展示了一个数字微流控平台，用于操作纳米升大小的试剂和样品液滴，用于从芯片存储库中分配，高速运输，混合，分裂和稀释，以及葡萄糖，乳酸盐和肌酐的比色测量。在第二阶段，将开发用于血液化学的一次性芯片实验室，其中0.5微升的人类血液将作为数字微流体系统的输入，它将以完全自动化的方式输出代谢物，蛋白质，电解质，气体，红细胞压积和酶的测量结果。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Latrogenic blood loss or "bleeding into the laboratory" is an important reason for administration of small volume transfusions in very low birth weight premature 6infants. A direct correlation was found between the volume of blood drawn for diagnostics and subsequent volume transfused. In neonatal infants, there may not be enough collected blood sample to perform all the necessary tests. Conventional laboratory analysis of blood samples while in the field (accidents, disasters, battlefield, etc.) is impractical. A handheld, automated, inexpensive, multi-analyte and multiplexed blood chemistry analyzer will help reduce the blood analysis volume from milliliters to nanoliters, reduce the need for further transfusions, and make the analyzer available at the point-of-care (clinics, operating & emergency rooms, intensive care units, and in the field). In Phase I, we have successfully demonstrated a digital microfluidic platform for manipulation of nanoliter-sized droplets of reagents and sample for dispensing from on-chip reservoirs, high speed transport, mixing, splitting and dilution, and colorimetric measurement of glucose, lactate, and creatinine. In phase II, a disposable lab-on-a-chip for blood chemistry will be developed where 0.5 microliters of human blood will be the input to the digital microfluidic system and it outputs the measurements of metabolites, proteins, electrolytes, gases, hematocrit, and enzymes in a completely automated fashion.