Lo Ting-Wen, Liu Jing, Zhang Yuqian, Kim Yohan, Yao Janet, Dong Haidong, Lucien Fabrice, Liu Yuguang
Department of Physiology & Biomedical Engineering, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, 55905, USA.
Microbiome Program, Center for Individualized Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, 55905, USA.
Small. 2025 Jul 31:e04335. doi: 10.1002/smll.202504335.
Extracellular vesicles (EV) are phospholipid-encapsulated nanoparticles secreted by cells into their surrounding environment. EVs can transfer a variety of biomolecules that mediate intercellular communication and play a key role in physiological and pathological processes. Therefore, EVs are emerging as new biomarkers for diseases, therapeutic targets, and drug delivery vehicles. The isolation and detection of EVs requires time-consuming and labor-intensive processes, first to extract EVs from biological and physiological fluids and then to detect EV-associated molecules with high sensitivity. The methodologies and instruments commonly used for EV analysis are not widely accessible outside of dedicated research laboratories, creating practical barriers for the study of EV-associated molecules in biology research and clinical applications. To bridge this gap, we developed a proof-of-concept digital microfluidic device that can automatedly extract EVs from 20 µL of culture and human plasma samples within 25 min and detect EV-bound proteins (e.g PD-L1) on-chip using an electrochemical sensor. This work serves as a framework for the development of streamlined EV analysis in both research and diagnostics.
细胞外囊泡（EV）是细胞分泌到周围环境中的磷脂包裹的纳米颗粒。EV可以转移多种介导细胞间通讯的生物分子，并在生理和病理过程中发挥关键作用。因此，EV正成为疾病的新生物标志物、治疗靶点和药物递送载体。EV的分离和检测需要耗时且费力的过程，首先要从生物和生理流体中提取EV，然后以高灵敏度检测与EV相关的分子。常用于EV分析的方法和仪器在专门的研究实验室之外并不广泛可用，这为生物学研究和临床应用中与EV相关分子的研究造成了实际障碍。为了弥补这一差距，我们开发了一种概念验证数字微流控装置，该装置可以在25分钟内从20微升培养物和人血浆样本中自动提取EV，并使用电化学传感器在芯片上检测与EV结合的蛋白质（如PD-L1）。这项工作为在研究和诊断中开发简化的EV分析提供了一个框架。
