Departments of Medicine and Biomedical Engineering, College of Medicine, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85724, USA.
Department of Electronics, Information and Bioengineering, Politecnico di Milano, 20133 Milan, Italy.
Int J Mol Sci. 2020 Feb 11;21(4):1174. doi: 10.3390/ijms21041174.
As key cellular elements of hemostasis, platelets represent a primary target for thrombosis and bleeding management. Currently, therapeutic manipulations of platelet function (antithrombotic drugs) and count (platelet transfusion) are performed with limited or no real-time monitoring of the desired outcome at the point-of-care. To address the need, we have designed and fabricated an easy-to-use, accurate, and portable impedance aggregometer called "MICELI" (MICrofluidic, ELectrical, Impedance). It improves on current platelet aggregation technology by decreasing footprint, assay complexity, and time to obtain results. The current study aimed to optimize the MICELI protocol; validate sensitivity to aggregation agonists and key blood parameters, i.e., platelet count and hematocrit; and verify the MICELI operational performance as compared to commercial impedance aggregometry. We demonstrated that the MICELI aggregometer could detect platelet aggregation in 250 μL of whole blood or platelet-rich plasma, stimulated by ADP, TRAP-6, collagen, epinephrine, and calcium ionophore. Using hirudin as blood anticoagulant allowed higher aggregation values. Aggregation values obtained by the MICELI strongly correlated with platelet count and were not affected by hematocrit. The operational performance comparison of the MICELI and the Multiplate Analyzer demonstrated strong correlation and similar interdonor distribution of aggregation values obtained between these devices. With the proven reliability of the data obtained by the MICELI aggregometer, it can be further translated into a point-of-care diagnostic device aimed at monitoring platelet function in order to guide pharmacological hemostasis management and platelet transfusions.
作为止血的关键细胞成分，血小板是血栓形成和出血管理的主要靶点。目前，对血小板功能（抗血栓药物）和计数（血小板输注）的治疗操作是在没有实时监测的情况下进行的，无法在治疗点获得所需的结果。为了解决这一需求，我们设计并制造了一种易于使用、准确且便携的阻抗聚集仪，称为“MICELI”（微流控、电、阻抗）。它通过减小足迹、检测复杂性和获得结果的时间，改进了当前的血小板聚集技术。本研究旨在优化 MICELI 方案；验证对聚集激动剂和关键血液参数（即血小板计数和血细胞比容）的敏感性；并验证 MICELI 的操作性能与商业阻抗聚集法相比。我们证明，MICELI 聚集仪可以在 250μL 的全血或富含血小板的血浆中检测到由 ADP、TRAP-6、胶原、肾上腺素和钙离子载体刺激的血小板聚集。使用水蛭素作为血液抗凝剂可以获得更高的聚集值。MICELI 获得的聚集值与血小板计数强烈相关，不受血细胞比容的影响。MICELI 和 Multiplate Analyzer 的操作性能比较表明，这两种设备获得的聚集值具有很强的相关性和相似的供体间分布。MICELI 聚集仪获得的数据具有可靠的可靠性，它可以进一步转化为一种即时诊断设备，用于监测血小板功能，以指导药理学止血管理和血小板输注。
