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Updated: Apr 18, 2026
Capture and Release of Viable Circulating Tumor Cells from Blood
Published on: October 28, 2016
Tunable nanostructured coating for the capture and selective release of viable circulating tumor cells
Eduardo Reátegui1, Nicola Aceto, Eugene J Lim
1Center for Engineering in Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Building 114, 16th Street, Charlestown, MA, 02129, USA; Shriners Hospital for Children, Harvard Medical School, 51 Blossom Street, Boston, MA, 02114, USA; Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School 55, 55 Fruit Street, Boston, MA, 02114, USA.
Abstract:
A layer-by-layer gelatin nanocoating is presented for use as a tunable, dual response biomaterial for the capture and release of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from cancer patient blood. The entire nanocoating can be dissolved from the surface of microfluidic devices through biologically compatible temperature shifts. Alternatively, individual CTCs can be released through locally applied mechanical stress.
