Microfluidic devices, assemblies, and systems are provided, as are methods of manipulating micro-sized samples of fluids. Microfluidic devices having a plurality of specialized processing features are also provided.

AIE-active chemosensors, according to the present teachings, exhibit UV-vis absorption change and become non-luminescent upon protonation. Upon deprotonation, the chemosensors revert to their original absorption and emission. This deprotonation process can be triggered in the presence of amines, and specifically, biogenic amines. The chemosensors can detect amine species, e.g., biogenic amines produced during food fermentation, quickly and with high sensitivity. Further, due to the AIE nature of the compounds, the chemosensors can be loaded onto a physical support and sealed inside a food package to monitor food spoilage.

The present disclosure generally relates to a color indicator that signals when the concentration of an antimicrobial solution changes. In some embodiments, the color indicator is specific for changes in the concentration of an antimicrobial quaternary ammonium compound in an antimicrobial solution. The color indicator can be incorporated into a variety of articles including towels, labels, containers, buckets, trays, sinks, spray bottles, liners for containers, buckets, sinks, or spray bottles, indictor wands or strips, and test kits.

To provide an anti-cancer agent sensitivity determination marker, which marker can determine whether or not the patient has a therapeutic response to the anti-cancer agent, and novel cancer therapeutic means employing the marker. The anti-cancer agent sensitivity determination marker, the anti-cancer agent including oxaliplatin or a salt thereof and fluorouracil or a salt thereof, contains one or more substances selected from among an amino-acid-metabolism-related substance, a nucleic-acid-metabolism-related substance, a substance in the pentose phosphate pathway, a substance in the glycolytic pathway, a substance in the TCA cycle, a polyamine-metabolism-related substance, 7,8-dihydrobiopterin, 6-phosphogluconic acid, butyric acid, triethanolamine, 1-methylnicotinamide, NADH, NAD.sup.+, and a substance involved in the metabolism of any of these substances.

Disclosed herein is a fluorescent compound represented by the following general formula and having fluorescence characteristics that vary in the presence of a subject substance,

##STR00001##

wherein R.sub.1 and R.sub.2 each independently represent a carboxyl group, or a substituent containing a carboxyl group, and R.sub.3 and R.sub.4 each independently represent a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group, an alkoxy group, a halogen atom, a hydroxyl group, a carboxyl group, or a substituent containing a carboxyl group.

Systems, methods, and software that measure a plurality of error values each related to a different condition of an aquatic environment monitoring system including a degradation in a chemical indicator due to photo-aging, a degradation in a chemical indicator due to water-aging, a physical contamination of a chemical indicator, an illumination imbalance related to an optical reader, a degradation of a light source of an optical reader, a contamination in water between an optical reader and a chemical indicator, a displacement due to friction between a chemical indicator apparatus and a monitoring unit, an error intrinsic in a chemical indicator, and an error in distance between a chemical indicator and an optical reader. The plurality of error values are used to determine a confidence level that is compared to a threshold value associated with the monitoring system. A correction instruction is generated for correcting one or more of the conditions.

Disclosed herein is a fluorescent compound represented by the following general formula and having fluorescence characteristics that vary in the presence of a subject substance, ##STR00001##
wherein R.sub.1 and R.sub.2 each independently represent a carboxyl group, or a substituent containing a carboxyl group, and R.sub.3 and R.sub.4 each independently represent a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group, an alkoxy group, a halogen atom, a hydroxyl group, a carboxyl group, or a substituent containing a carboxyl group.

The present invention relates to the field of diagnostic methods. Specifically, the present invention contemplates a method for diagnosing heart failure in a subject and a method for monitoring progression or regression of heart failure in a subject. The invention also relates to tools for carrying out the aforementioned methods, such as diagnostic devices.

A device for detecting an analyte in a sample is provided, which comprises: a collecting chamber containing an opening for collecting a liquid sample; a detecting element for detecting an analyte in the liquid sample; and a lid for covering the opening of the collecting chamber. The device further comprises an indicating device thereon to indicate whether or not the lid covers at an appointed position. The operation of the device is very simple.

The invention relates to analytical chemistry, in particular to means and methods for the quantitative determination of derivatized biogenic amines, precursors or metabolites thereof. Provided is a method for the in situ derivatization of at least one biogenic amine, precursor or metabolite thereof in an isolated aqueous sample, the derivatization comprising the steps of: (i) contacting said sample with a propionic anhydride/acetonitril solution in the presence of a phosphate buffer having a pH in the range of 7.0 to 9.0 and allowing the conversion of amine and/or hydroxyl moieties of said biogenic amine or metabolite thereof to form a propionyl derivative of said biogenic amine; followed by (ii) adding to the reaction mixture obtained in step (i) a carbodiimide compound and an electrophilic amine-containing compound, and allowing the carbodiimide-mediated derivatization of carboxylic acid moieties of a biogenic amine, precursor or metabolite thereof.