Enhanced cancer cell sorting using lab-on-a-disk pattern design with magnetic and centrifugal forces

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Microfluidics
• Cell Biology

Background:

• Traditional biological testing methods can be invasive and time-consuming.
• Microfluidic devices offer a non-invasive approach for rapid and accurate biological detection.
• Lab-on-a-disk (LoaD) design is crucial for optimizing microfluidic performance in biological feature identification.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a novel device for extracting cancer cells from heterogeneous populations.
• To utilize centrifugal-force-driven microfluidic flow and magnetic labeling for cell separation.
• To improve the accuracy and speed of cancer cell detection and isolation.

Main Methods:

• A novel lab-on-a-disk (LoaD) device was designed and fabricated.
• Two-stage centrifugal force was employed to drive and control microfluidic flow.
• Cancer cells were labeled with CD44 antibody-magnetic bead complexes for magnetic separation.

Main Results:

• The device successfully separated CD44 receptor-positive cancer cells from a heterogeneous mixture.
• Microbead-bound cancer cells were retained in the designated magnetic area.
• The remaining biological mixture was effectively retained in the reservoir area.
• The entire cell separation process was completed in less than 2 hours.

Conclusions:

• The developed centrifugal microfluidic device with magnetic labeling provides an efficient method for cancer cell extraction.
• This non-invasive technique offers a faster and more accurate alternative to traditional invasive testing.
• The specialized LoaD design facilitates precise control over microfluidic flow for targeted cell separation.