Microfluidics Stream Their Way into Medical Tests 
Capillary-driven microfluidics could drastically change point-of-care diagnostics, thanks to IBM researchers Luc Gervais and Emmanuel Delamarche.
At IBM’s Zurich Research Laboratory, the scientists created a one-step immunoassay by combining microfluidic elements and reagents such as analyte molecules, detection antibodies (dAbs) and capture antibodies (cAbs). Only a 5-µL sample of human serum is needed to prompt the sandwich immunoassay, which is read using a fluorescence microscope. The microfluidic functional elements comprise a reaction chamber sealed with polydimethysiloxane (PDMS) substrate, as well as a sample collector, delay valves, a deposition zone for dAbs, a capillary pump, and vents.1
“Our main goal was to develop a device that is quantitative and easy to use by non-trained medical personnel,” said Gervais. “A lot of labs are working on a chip. In many cases you have a chip alongside numerous electrical components and tubes, so it’s not really a lab on a chip; it’s a chip in a lab.”
At IBM’s Zurich Research Laboratory, the scientists created a one-step immunoassay by combining microfluidic elements and reagents such as analyte molecules, detection antibodies (dAbs) and capture antibodies (cAbs). Only a 5-µL sample of human serum is needed to prompt the sandwich immunoassay, which is read using a fluorescence microscope. The microfluidic functional elements comprise a reaction chamber sealed with polydimethysiloxane (PDMS) substrate, as well as a sample collector, delay valves, a deposition zone for dAbs, a capillary pump, and vents.1
“Our main goal was to develop a device that is quantitative and easy to use by non-trained medical personnel,” said Gervais. “A lot of labs are working on a chip. In many cases you have a chip alongside numerous electrical components and tubes, so it’s not really a lab on a chip; it’s a chip in a lab.”
