Institute of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, 164 College Street, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3G9, Canada.
Anal Chem. 2012 Oct 16;84(20):8805-12. doi: 10.1021/ac3020627. Epub 2012 Sep 26.
We introduce a new format for particle-based immunoassays relying on digital microfluidics (DMF) and magnetic forces to separate and resuspend antibody-coated paramagnetic particles. In DMF, fluids are electrostatically controlled as discrete droplets (picoliters to microliters) on an array of insulated electrodes. By applying appropriate sequences of potentials to these electrodes, multiple droplets can be manipulated simultaneously and various droplet operations can be achieved using the same device design. This flexibility makes DMF well-suited for applications that require complex, multistep protocols such as immunoassays. Here, we report the first particle-based immunoassay on DMF without the aid of oil carrier fluid to enable droplet movement (i.e., droplets are surrounded by air instead of oil). This new format allowed the realization of a novel on-chip particle separation and resuspension method capable of removing greater than 90% of unbound reagents in one step. Using this technique, we developed methods for noncompetitive and competitive immunoassays, using thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) and 17β-estradiol (E2) as model analytes, respectively. We show that, compared to conventional methods, the new DMF approach reported here reduced reagent volumes and analysis time by 100-fold and 10-fold, respectively, while retaining a level of analytical performance required for clinical screening. Thus, we propose that the new technique has great potential for eventual use in a fast, low-waste, and inexpensive instrument for the quantitative analysis of proteins and small molecules in low sample volumes.
我们介绍了一种新的基于粒子的免疫分析格式,该格式依赖于数字微流控(DMF)和磁力来分离和重悬抗体包被的顺磁颗粒。在 DMF 中,流体通过静电控制作为离散的液滴(皮升至微升)在绝缘电极的阵列上。通过对这些电极施加适当的电势序列,可以同时操纵多个液滴,并使用相同的器件设计实现各种液滴操作。这种灵活性使 DMF 非常适合需要复杂、多步协议的应用,如免疫分析。在这里,我们报告了第一个基于粒子的 DMF 免疫分析,无需油载体流体来实现液滴运动(即,液滴周围是空气而不是油)。这种新格式允许实现一种新颖的芯片上粒子分离和重悬浮方法,能够一步去除大于 90%的未结合试剂。使用这种技术,我们分别开发了非竞争和竞争免疫分析方法,使用促甲状腺激素(TSH)和 17β-雌二醇(E2)作为模型分析物。我们表明,与传统方法相比,这里报道的新 DMF 方法分别将试剂体积和分析时间减少了 100 倍和 10 倍,同时保留了用于临床筛选的分析性能水平。因此,我们提出,新技术具有很大的潜力,最终可以用于快速、低废物、低成本的仪器,用于对低样品体积中的蛋白质和小分子进行定量分析。