Antibody-Functional Microsphere-Integrated Filter Chip with Inertial Microflow for Size-Immune-Capturing and Digital...

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Oncology
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are key drivers of cancer metastasis and hold significant clinical value for diagnosis and treatment monitoring.
• Current methods for CTC isolation face challenges due to cancer cell heterogeneity, limiting efficiency and comprehensive capture.
• Developing advanced technologies for sensitive and efficient CTC detection is crucial for improving patient outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design and validate a novel microchip-based system for high-efficiency capture and sensitive detection of circulating tumor cells (CTCs).
• To integrate multiple strategies, including cell size, antigen specificity, and nanostructured microspheres, for enhanced CTC isolation.
• To develop a digital detection method for improved sensitivity and reduced background noise in CTC analysis.

Main Methods:

• A "filter chip" was engineered using semicircle arcs and arrays, incorporating antibody-functionalized, nanostructured zinc oxide-coated microspheres.
• The chip leverages both cell size and specific antigen capture to retain CTCs, with microspheres acting as a trapping mechanism.
• Digital detection using antibody-DNA conjugates and signal amplification was employed for sensitive CTC identification, minimizing background interference.

Main Results:

• The integrated microchip system demonstrated over 90% capture efficiency across various tumor cell lines.
• The design facilitates easy isolation and identification of captured circulating tumor cells within the chip structure.
• The digital detection method significantly enhanced sensitivity, overcoming challenges posed by low CTC abundance in blood samples.

Conclusions:

• The antibody-functionalized microsphere-integrated microchip offers a highly efficient and sensitive platform for circulating tumor cell isolation and detection.
• This technology shows promise for advancing fundamental cancer biology research and improving clinical applications in cancer diagnosis and monitoring.
• The developed method addresses key limitations in current CTC analysis, paving the way for more precise and personalized cancer care.