A device for isolating a microbe or a virion includes a semiconductor substrate; and a trench formed in the semiconductor substrate and extending from a surface of the semiconductor substrate to a region within the semiconductor substrate; wherein the trench has dimensions such that the microbe or the virion is trapped within the trench.

A technique related to sorting entities is provided. An inlet is configured to receive a fluid, and an outlet is configured to exit the fluid. A nanopillar array, connected to the inlet and the outlet, is configured to allow the fluid to flow from the inlet to the outlet. The nanopillar array includes nanopillars arranged to separate entities by size. The nanopillars are arranged to have a gap separating one nanopillar from another nanopillar. The gap is constructed to be in a nanoscale range.

A technique relates to a fluidic cell configured to hold a nanofluidic chip. A first plate is configured to hold the nanofluidic chip. A second plate is configured to fit on top of the first plate, such that the nanofluidic chip is held in place. The second plate has at least one first port and at least one second port. The second plate has an entrance hole configured to communicate with an inlet hole of the nanofluidic chip. The second port is angled above the first port, such that the first port and second port intersect to form a junction. The second port is formed to have a line-of-sight to the entrance hole, such that the second port is configured to receive input for extracting air trapped at a vicinity of the entrance hole.

The present invention relates to a test system or assay system (detection system) and to a test method, preferably in use in the point-of-care (PoC) field.

Methods that allow independently applied pressures to a BGE reservoir and a sample reservoir for pressure-driven injection that can inject a discrete sample plug into a separation channel that does not require voltage applied to the sample reservoir and can allow for in-channel focusing methods to be used. The methods are particularly suitable for use with a mass spectrometer.

A dispensing device for reducing the dead volume of a liquid sample includes a main channel connected to a sample inlet and a sample outlet, and branch channels connected to the main channel. Each branch channel is connected to a different liquid reservoir. High inflow-withstanding pressure sections are provided in the main channel between the branch channels and between the branch channel and the sample outlet. Each high inflow-withstanding pressure section has a channel inner wall forming a contact angle of 90 or larger with a liquid sample. A liquid sample enters the main channel through the sample inlet, reaches a branch point between the first branch channel and the main channel, flows into the first branch channel and the liquid reservoir, and then passes through the high inflow-withstanding pressure section to a branch point between the next branch channel and the main channel.

Methods and systems for isolating platelet-associated nucleated target cells, e.g., such as circulating epithelial cells, circulating tumor cells (CTCs), circulating endothelial cells (CECs), circulating stem cells (CSCs), neutrophils, and macrophages, from sample fluids, e.g., biological fluids, such as blood, bone marrow, plural effusions, and ascites fluid, are described. The methods include obtaining a cell capture chamber including a plurality of binding moieties bound to one or more walls of the chamber, wherein the binding moieties specifically bind to platelets; flowing the sample fluid through the cell capture chamber under conditions that allow the binding moieties to bind to any platelet-associated nucleated target cells in the sample to form complexes; and separating and collecting platelet-associated nucleated target cells from the complexes.

A system and method for isolating and analyzing single cells, wherein the system includes: an array of wells defined at a substrate, each well including an open surface and a well cavity configured to capture cells in one of a single-cell format and single-cluster format, and a fluid delivery module including a fluid reservoir superior to the array of wells through which fluid flow is controlled along a fluid path in a direction parallel to the broad face of the substrate; and wherein the method includes: distributing a population of cells and a population of non-cell particles across the array of wells through the fluid reservoir to increase capture efficiency of individual cell-particle pairs within the array of wells, and processing the captured cell-particle pairs at the set of wells.

A system and method for isolating and analyzing single cells, wherein the system includes: an array of wells defined at a substrate, each well including an open surface and a well cavity configured to capture cells in one of a single-cell format and single-cluster format, and a fluid delivery module including a fluid reservoir superior to the array of wells through which fluid flow is controlled along a fluid path in a direction parallel to the broad face of the substrate; and wherein the method includes: capturing a population of non-cell particles into the array of wells in single-particle format; releasing, from the non-cell particles, a set of probes into the array of wells; capturing a population of cells into the array of wells in single-cell format; releasing biomolecules from each captured cell into the array of wells; and generating a set of genetic complexes comprising the biomolecules associated with a single captured cell and a subset of probes within individual wells of the array of wells.

A microfluidic device for conducting a fluid assay includes an injection-molded (or molded) fluidics layer having at least one microfluidic channel configured to allow assay fluids to flow there-along, the channel having channel side walls, a channel bottom, and a channel 3D geometry, and the fluidics layer being made from injection-molded liquid silicone (or PDMS). Having the fluidics layer made from injection molded liquid silicone enables smaller-sized channel features, such as microfluidic valves and pistons, smaller channel dimensions and spacing (providing smaller device footprint, higher device capacity and other benefits), and various geometries for the channels and channel features.