Quantification of amino acids in a single cell by microchip electrophoresis with chemiluminescence detection

Analyzing individual cells allows detecting a minor group of abnormal cells present in a large population of normal cells. This ability can be essential to understanding diseases, such as cancer and diabetes. Microchip electrophoresis (MCE) is the technique of choice for single-cell analysis. However, since the channels in microfluidic devices are very small, achieving the desired assay sensitivity on a microfluidic platform remains a challenge. Here, we describe an MCE method with highly sensitive chemiluminescence detection for simultaneous determination of multiple amino acids present in single cells.