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A wide range of diseases and conditions are monitored or diagnosed from blood plasma, but the ability to analyze a whole blood sample with the requirements for a point-of-care device, such as robustness, user-friendliness, and simple handling, remains unmet. Microfluidics technology offers the possibility not only to work fresh thumb-pricked whole blood but also to maximize the amount of the obtained plasma from the initial sample and therefore the possibility to implement multiple tests in a single cartridge. The microfluidic design presented in this paper is a combination of cross-flow filtration with a reversible electroosmotic flow that prevents clogging at the filter entrance and maximizes the amount of separated plasma. The main advantage of this design is its efficiency, since from a small amount of sample (a single droplet 10¿µl) almost 10% of this (approx 1¿µl) is extracted and collected with high purity (more than 99%) in a reasonable time (5–8 min). To validate the quality and quantity of the separated plasma and to show its potential as a clinical tool, the microfluidic chip has been combined with lateral flow immunochromatography technology to perform a qualitative detection of the thyroid-stimulating hormone and a blood panel for measuring cardiac Troponin and Creatine Kinase MB. The results from the microfluidic system are comparable to previous commercial lateral flow assays that required more sample for implementing fewer tests.

Peer Reviewed