Purification of Lymphocytes by Acoustic Separation in Plastic Microchannels

Area of Science:

• Biotechnology
• Biomedical Engineering
• Cellular Biology

Background:

• Cell therapies require efficient and pure starting materials.
• Current lymphocyte purification methods (centrifugation) have limitations in purity and automation.
• Novel purification techniques are needed to meet the demands of emerging cell therapies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present an alternative blood cell purification system using acoustic forces.
• To evaluate the system's performance in purifying lymphocytes from various blood sources.
• To demonstrate the potential of acoustic purification for cell therapy workflows.

Main Methods:

• Development of a blood cell purification system utilizing acoustic forces within plastic microchannels.
• Testing the system's efficacy on leukapheresis product, buffy coat, and whole blood samples.
• Quantification of lymphocyte purity, recovery, and depletion of other blood cell types.

Main Results:

• The acoustic system achieved up to 97% lymphocyte purity and 68% recovery.
• Demonstrated significant depletion of monocytes (98%), red blood cells, and platelets.
• Validated performance across different starting blood materials.

Conclusions:

• Acoustic forces in microchannels offer a promising alternative for lymphocyte purification.
• The developed system shows potential for integration into cell therapy workflows.
• Future scale-up could reduce costs and expand patient access to cell therapies.