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Updated: Jun 16, 2026
10:27
Microfluidic Buffer Exchange for Interference-free Micro/Nanoparticle Cell Engineering
Published on: July 10, 2016
Perspectives on utilizing unique features of microfluidics technology for particle and cell sorting.
1Department of Physics, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, 93106, USA.
JALA (Charlottesville, Va.)
|February 18, 2010
Summary
Microfluidic devices offer precise cell and particle separation for improved assay results. These systems enable high-purity sorting and multi-target analysis, advancing diagnostics and personalized medicine.
Area of Science:
- Biotechnology
- Analytical Chemistry
- Microfluidics
Background:
- Sample preparation is critical for assay quality but often tedious.
- Sophisticated biological questions require advanced cell and particle separation methods.
- Microfluidics offers precise control for high-purity, high-throughput separation in low-cost devices.
Purpose of the Study:
- To illustrate the potential of microfluidic cell- and particle-sorting devices.
- To demonstrate chip-based high-gradient magnetophoresis for high-purity separation.
- To describe the development of devices for simultaneous multi-target sorting.
Main Methods:
- Utilized chip-based high-gradient magnetophoresis for reversible trapping and high-stringency washing.
- Developed devices for precise control of magnetic and fluidic forces for sorting.
- Integrated multiple actuation forces into single monolithic devices for simultaneous multi-target sorting.
Main Results:
- Achieved high-purity separation with minimal loss using magnetophoresis.
- Demonstrated simultaneous multi-target sorting capabilities.
- Showcased the potential of microfluidic devices as front-end modules for integrated analytical platforms.
Conclusions:
- Microfluidic cell and particle sorting devices offer reliable and reproducible separation.
- These technologies are key to advancing point-of-care diagnostics and personalized medicine.
- Integrated microfluidic systems can provide actionable diagnostic information from unprocessed samples.
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01:20Overview Of Cell Separation And Isolation
Cell separation was first achieved in 1964 by S. H. Seal, who separated large tumor cells from the smaller blood cells using filtration. Two years later, Pohl and Hawk performed experiments on how cells respond differently to a nonuniform electric field based on the cell type. Such observations were the inception of cell separation methods, which allow isolating a single cell type from a heterogeneous sample.
01:23Flow Cytometry
The development of flow cytometry techniques began in 1934 with initial attempts by Andrew Moldavan, a bacteriologist who counted the cells in a flowing capillary system. Moldavan pumped cells through a capillary tube focused under a microscope for visualization. The invention of photometry allowed the measurement of differentially-stained cells, and Louis Kamentsky developed the first multiparameter flow cytometer in 1965 to identify and count the cancer cells in cervical tissue specimens.
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