A novel Real Time micro PCR based Point-of-Care device for Salmonella detection in human clinical samples.

Our POC (Point of Care) device is intended to be a diagnostic tool for routine use in the clinical sector. The validation of the whole procedure, including bacterial genomic DNA isolation and the Real Time detection of Salmonella spp., was conducted on 29 clinical stool samples that had been diagnosed with Salmonella spp. by a routine culture technique. The entire process was achieved in a single microfluidic chip within 35 min. In comparison to the culture reference method that is used in the clinical laboratories, this new device performed well in regards to the analytical parameters of sensitivity, specificity and accuracy. Therefore, the POC device reported in this study proved to be very appropriate for the fully integrated analysis system. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first work to report the sample preparation and followed by Real Time PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) on a single 2.5 µl chamber chip for the detection of Salmonella spp. bacteria in stool samples.

Laboratory skinpatches and smart cards based on foils.

This paper presents: (i) a hand held system consisting of a portable platform and disposable polymeric Lab-on-a-card capable of performing a nucleic acid concentration, amplification and detection with reagents inside; and a (ii) wearable diagnostic Lab-on-a-Paper skinpatch system, capable of performing in-situ sweat sampling, analyte pre-concentration, and immunoassay analysis. The skinpatch works in conjunction with a hand-held optoelectronic reader / micro PC fluorescence analysis interface.

Fabrication of SU-8 based microchip electrophoresis with integrated electrochemical detection for neurotransmitters.

A new SU-8 based microchip capillary electrophoresis (MCE) device has been developed for the first time with integrated electrochemical detection. Embedded electrophoretic microchannels have been fabricated with a multilayer technology based on bonding and releasing steps of stacked SU-8 films. This technology has allowed the monolithic integration in the device of the electrochemical detection system based on platinum electrodes. The fabrication of the chips presented in this work is totally compatible with reel-to-reel techniques, which guarantee a low cost and high reliability production. The influence of relevant experimental variables, such as the separation voltage and detection potential, has been studied on the SU-8 microchip with an attractive analytical performance. Thus, the effective electrical isolation of the end-channel amperometric detector has been also demonstrated. The good performance of the SU-8 device has been proven for separation and detection of the neurotransmitters, dopamine (DA) and epinephrine (EP). High efficiency (30,000-80,000 N/m), excellent precision, good detection limit (450 nM) and resolution (0.90-1.30) has been achieved on the SU-8 microchip. These SU-8 devices have shown a better performance than commercial Topas (thermoplastic olefin polymer of amorphous structure) microchips. The low cost and versatile SU-8 microchip with integrated platinum film electrochemical detector holds great promise for high-volume production of disposable microfluidic analytical devices.

The SmartBioPhone, a point of care vision under development through two European projects: OPTOLABCARD and LABONFOIL.

This paper describes how sixteen partners from eight different countries across Europe are working together in two EU projects focused on the development of a point of care system. This system uses disposable Lab on a Chips (LOCs) that carry out the complete assay from sample preparation to result interpretation of raw samples. The LOC is either embedded in a flexible motherboard with the form of a smartcard (Labcard) or in a Skinpatch. The first project, OPTOLABCARD, extended and tested the use of a thick photoresit (SU-8) as a structural material to manufacture LOCs by lamination. This project produced several examples where SU-8 microfluidic circuitry revealed itself as a viable material for several applications, such as the integration on chip of a Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) that includes sample concentration, PCR amplification and optical detection of Salmonella spp. using clinical samples. The ongoing project, LABONFOIL, is using two results of OPTOLABCARD: the sample concentration method and the capability to fabricate flexible and ultra thin LOCs based on sheets instead of wafers. This rupture from the limited and expensive wafer surface heritage allows the development of a platform where LOCs are big enough to include all the sample preparation subcomponents at a low price. These LOCs will be used in four point of care applications: environment, food, cancer and drug monitoring. The user will obtain the results of the tests by connecting the Labcard/Skinpatch reader to a very popular interface (a smartphone), creating a new instrument namely "The SmartBioPhone". All standard smartphone capabilities will be at the disposal of the point of care instrument by a simple click. In order to guarantee the future mass production of these LOCs, the project will develop a large dry film equipment where LOCs will be fabricated at a low cost.

SDS-CGE of proteins in microchannels made of SU-8 films.

This work describes the SDS-CGE of proteins carried out in microchannels made of the negative photoresist EPON SU-8. Embedded electrophoretic microchannels have been fabricated with a multilayer technology based on bonding and releasing steps of stacked SU-8 films. This technology allows the monolithic integration of the electrodes in the device. A high wafer fabrication yield and mass production compatibility guarantees low costs and high reliability. A poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) packaging allows an easy setup and replacement of the device for electrophoresis experiments. In addition, the wire-bonding step is avoided. The electrophoretic mobilities of four proteins have been measured in microchannels filled with polyacrylamide. Different pore sizes have been tested obtaining their Ferguson plots. Finally, a separation of two proteins (20 and 36 kDa) has been carried out confirming that this novel device is suitable for protein separation. A resolution of 2.75 is obtained. This is the first time that this SU-8 microfluidic technology has been validated for SDS-CGE of proteins. This technology offers better separation performance than glass channels, at lower costs and with an easy packaging procedure.