Abstract

Lab-on-Chip for Point-of-Care applications

marketing Micronit, , Micronit Microtechnologies BV

A rapidly growing interest in lab-on-chip microfluidic devices for Point-of-Care applications has led to a number of new technological developments in this area. This presentation will focus on two technological platforms that Micronit has been developing in the past few years: - Passive flow control in microfluidic devices - Microchip CE platform for PoC analysis of body fluids and environmental samples Passive capillary stop valves are an elegant way for a flowing liquid, within a microfluidic device, to be completely stopped without any external interference. Use of this technique in combination with non-mechanical triggering (e.g. electrostatic fields), enables the implementation of more complex laboratory workflows, requiring multiple flow sequences, without the need for mechanical valves or active pumping. Micronit has developed a microchip capillary electrophoresis platform in close collaboration with Medimate. This Point-of-Care device, used for monitoring Lithium levels in blood of patients with a bipolar disorder, has recently been commercialized by Medimate (CE certified). Besides Lithium monitoring in blood this versatile platform can also be adapted to PoC analysis of other body fluids (e.g. urine, saliva) and environmental samples (e.g. water quality). A few illustrative examples will be given during this presentation.