Blood typing systems and methods are provided. In one embodiment, the method may be achieved by applying a sample to a surface of a substrate having one or more binding agents immobilized thereon, wherein the one or more binding agents are capable of binding to one or more substances in the sample; substantially removing unbound material from at least a portion of the substrate having immobilized binding agent; and detecting substances bound to the one or more binding agents immobilized on the substrate; wherein the applying the sample to the surface of the substrate step is concurrent with the removing unbound material from at least a portion of the substrate step. Systems and other methods are also described and illustrated.

Microfluidic devices that are configured to use centrifugal forces to bias particles into one or more capture regions based on their individual sizes are described.

There is disclosed a fluid distribution system for distributing fluid from a single source to a plurality of downstream receptacles. The system has a distribution manifold with a single inlet and a plurality of outlets arrayed around a circumferential outer periphery. The outlets may be directed to the different receptacles which each have their own vent filter, or each receptacle connects back to the distribution manifold for common venting.

In biosciences and related fields, it can be useful to study cells in isolation so that cells having unique and desirable properties can be identified within a heterogenous mixture of cells. Processes and methods disclosed herein provide for encapsulating cells within a microfluidic device and assaying the encapsulated cells. Encapsulation can, among other benefits, facilitate analyses of cells that generate secretions of interest which would otherwise rapidly diffuse away or mix with the secretions of other cells.

A microfluidic chip includes a functional area, which is covered by a flexible or deformable cover. The cover has an expansion limiter. This expansion limiter can for example be embodied as a stable plate including one or more than one opening. The expansion limiter may be fixedly connected to the cover.

A micro-fluidic chip comprises a chip base, a lens, and a securing portion. The chip base has a flow cell and a micro-fluidic channel defined therein. The micro-fluidic channel is fluidly connected to the flow cell to deliver fluid to and from the flow cell, respectively via a fluid input port and a fluid output port. The lens has an apex and a base. The apex is positioned within the flow cell. The securing portion is affixed to the chip base such that the lens is sandwiched between the chip base and the securing portion. The securing portion has a circular cavity defined therein in a surface adjacent the chip base, for receiving the base of the lens. The securing portion further has separate light input and output channels to allow light in and out, respectively, of the circular cavity and the lens.

Disclosed herein is a microfluidic device comprising, at least one sample inlet for receiving biological cells in a biological fluid sample; at least one sheath flow inlet for receiving a sheath fluid; at least one curvilinear channel configured to provide the biological fluid sample substantially in an outer flow and the sheath fluid in substantially an inner separated flow; a plurality of cell traps at the periphery of the curvilinear channel, each trap configured to admit a single cell having a targeted size range from the outer flow.

The present invention relates to a method for analyzing and selecting a specific droplet among a plurality of droplets (4), comprising the following steps: —providing a plurality of droplets (4), —for a droplet (4) among the plurality of droplets, measuring at least two optical signals, each optical signal being representative of a light intensity spatial distribution in the droplet for an associated wavelength channel, —calculating a plurality of parameters from the optical signals, —determining a sorting class for a droplet according to calculated parameters, —sorting said droplet according to its sorting class, wherein the plurality of parameters comprises the coordinates of a maximum for each optical signal and a co-localization parameter and the at least two calculated parameters used for the determining step comprises the co-localization parameter.

A repeatable method for detecting circulating tumor cells in vitro is provided. The method involves combining a test sample from a patient suspected of having circulating tumor cells, and a non-lytic adenoviral system, and culture media for the cells. The adenoviral system utilizes (i) a first replication-defective adenoviral particle in which an expression cassette is packaged, said expression cassette comprising an adenoviral 5′ and 3′ ITRs and a tumor-specific promoter; and (ii) a coding sequence for a reporter protein which is expressed in the presence of circulating tumor cells, and an adenoviral 3′ ITR. The test sample and the non-lytic adenoviral system are incubated for a sufficient time to permit expression of the reporter protein, and measuring reporter protein expression in the test samples, whereby presence of reporter expression indicates the presence of circulating tumor cells in the sample.

Provided is a method for manufacturing a medical diagnostic chip using a mixed lithography method. The method includes forming first patterns in a first region using first lithography, and forming second patterns in a second region using second lithography, wherein a part of the second patterns is formed in a part of the first region among the region where the first region and the second region are adjacent to each other.