Abstract

Navigating the Winding Road of Inertial Focusing to the Clinic

Dino Di Carlo, Armond and Elena Hairapetian Chair in Engineering and Medicine, Professor and Vice Chair of Bioengineering, University of California Los Angeles

I will share a historical perspective exploring inertial microfluidic concepts, from the beginning in Mehmet Toner's Center for Engineering in Medicine, to its application for cell profiling using deformability cytometry at UCLA, to the recent FDA-clearance and clinical use of deformability cytometry as part of the IntelliSep test for early sepsis diagnosis. IntelliSep is the first FDA-cleared test for early sepsis diagnosis and the first test that employs biomechanical measurements of cells as a key marker of disease. The talk will highlight key aspects of matching microfluidic technology capabilities with clinical need, lessons learned in the journey from research lab to the clinic, and the importance of exploiting serendipity.