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Automatic Detection of Two Synovial Fluid Periprosthetic Joint Infection Biomarkers on an Integrated Microfluidic
To-Wen Chen1, Rishabh Gandotra2, Hwan-You Chang3
1Department of Power Mechanical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan.
Analytical Chemistry
|May 5, 2023
Summary
A new microfluidic system rapidly detects two key biomarkers, alpha defensin human neutrophil peptide 1 (HNP-1) and C-reactive protein (CRP), for diagnosing periprosthetic joint infection (PJI). This innovative tool offers accurate and swift PJI diagnostics from synovial fluid.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Infectious Disease Diagnostics
- Biomarker Detection
Background:
- Periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) poses significant diagnostic challenges.
- Accurate and timely diagnosis of PJI is crucial for effective patient management.
- Current diagnostic methods can be time-consuming or lack sensitivity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a novel integrated microfluidic system (IMS) for rapid and simultaneous detection of PJI biomarkers.
- To establish a one-aptamer-one-antibody assay for detecting alpha defensin human neutrophil peptide 1 (HNP-1) and C-reactive protein (CRP) in synovial fluid (SF).
- To evaluate the diagnostic performance of the IMS for PJI.
Main Methods:
- Development of an integrated microfluidic system (IMS) for on-chip biomarker detection.
- Utilized a magnetic bead-based one-aptamer-one-antibody assay for simultaneous HNP-1 and CRP detection.
- Assay performed automatically within 45 minutes on a single chip.
Main Results:
- Simultaneous detection of HNP-1 (0.01-50 mg/L) and CRP (1-100 mg/L) achieved.
- High specificity of aptamers to their respective SF targets demonstrated.
- The IMS correctly diagnosed 20 clinical samples, validated against a gold standard kit.
Conclusions:
- The developed IMS is a promising tool for PJI diagnostics.
- The novel one-aptamer-one-antibody assay provides a rapid and specific method for PJI biomarker detection.
- On-chip detection of HNP-1 and CRP offers a potential advancement in diagnosing periprosthetic joint infections.

