Pumpless Microflow Cytometry Enabled by Viscosity Modulation and Immunobead Labeling

Anal Chem. 2018 Jul 3;90(13):8254-8260. doi: 10.1021/acs.analchem.8b01804. Epub 2018 Jun 19.

Abstract

Major challenges of miniaturizing flow cytometry include obviating the need for bulky, expensive, and complex pump-based fluidic and laser-based optical systems while retaining the ability to detect target cells based on their unique surface receptors. We addressed these critical challenges by (i) using a viscous liquid additive to control flow rate passively, without external pumping equipment, and (ii) adopting an immunobead assay that can be quantified with a portable fluorescence cell counter based on a blue light-emitting diode. Such novel features enable pumpless microflow cytometry (pFC) analysis by simply dropping a sample solution onto the inlet reservoir of a disposable cell-counting chamber. With our pFC platform, we achieved reliable cell counting over a dynamic range of 9-298 cells/μL. We demonstrated the practical utility of the platform by identifying a type of cancer cell based on CD326, the epithelial cell adhesion molecule. This portable microflow cytometry platform can be applied generally to a range of cell types using immunobeads labeled with specific antibodies, thus making it valuable for cell-based and point-of-care diagnostics.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Flow Cytometry / instrumentation*
  • Fluorescent Dyes / metabolism*
  • Humans
  • K562 Cells
  • Microspheres
  • Microtechnology / instrumentation*
  • Staining and Labeling
  • Viscosity

Substances

  • Fluorescent Dyes