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Plasma separation from blood: the 'lab-on-a-chip' approach
Shatanik Mukherjee1, Tae Goo Kang, Yu Chen
1Division of Bioengineering and Department of Surgery, National University of Singapore; and Bioelectronics and BioMEMS Program, Institute of Microelectronics, Singapore.
Critical Reviews in Biomedical Engineering
|June 23, 2010
Summary
Microfluidic devices offer a miniaturized, efficient solution for separating plasma from blood, crucial for accurate disease diagnostics. This review explores innovative microtechnologies for high-throughput plasma separation, addressing current challenges.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Clinical Diagnostics
- Microfluidics
Background:
- Accurate blood component analysis is vital for disease detection.
- Conventional centrifugation for plasma separation requires extensive lab infrastructure.
- Cellular components in blood samples can interfere with diagnostic accuracy.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review advancements in microtechnologies for plasma separation from whole blood.
- To highlight the benefits of microfluidic devices in diagnostics.
- To discuss challenges and future directions in microscale plasma separation.
Main Methods:
- Review of current literature on microfluidic plasma separation devices.
- Analysis of microfabrication techniques applied to blood separation.
- Evaluation of device performance metrics like throughput and reliability.
Main Results:
- Microfluidic devices enable small sample volumes, faster processing, and precise control.
- Innovative microtechnologies are enabling high-throughput plasma separation.
- Challenges include particle clogging, sample preparation, and device reproducibility.
Conclusions:
- Microfluidic plasma separation holds significant promise for improving diagnostic efficiency and accessibility.
- Further research is needed to overcome challenges in quality, reliability, and consistency.
- These technologies are key to advancing point-of-care diagnostics.
