Beads with functionalized material applied to them are exposed to an acoustic field to trap, retain or pass the beads. The beads may include or be free of ferro magnetic material. The beads may be biocompatible or biodegradable for a host. The size of the beads may vary over a range, and/or be heterogenous or homogenous. The composition of the beads may include high, neutral or low acoustic contrast material. The chemistry of the functionalized material may be compatible with existing processes. The acoustic field may be generated, for example, in an acoustic angled wave device or in an acoustic fluidized bed.

A method for filling microchambers with a chemistry in a substrate containing a plurality of microchambers comprises forming a channel in the substrate such that the channel is fluidically connected with the plurality of microchambers. The chemistry is delivered into the channel so that the chemistry is delivered to each of the microchambers. The chemistry is then permitted to incubate within each of the microchambers. Excess chemistry is then removed from the microchambers by introducing fluid through the channel to each of the connected microchambers.

A microfluidic valve includes a carrier layer and a flexible membrane layer arranged on a surface of the carrier layer. The surface of the carrier layer has a valve chamber in the form of a spherical cap and a membrane formed by the flexible membrane layer covers at least the valve chamber. A plurality of microfluidic channels opening into the valve chamber are formed in the surface of the carrier layer. Moreover, an inflow channel and an outflow channel are connected to one another by a microfluidic connection channel. The connection channel and the valve chamber are positioned relative to each other in such a way that in the closed state of the membrane, a fluid can flow from the inflow channel via the connection channel into the outflow channel to bridge the valve chamber, while the at least one supply channel is closed by the membrane.

The invention provides sample cartridges for processing samples. The sample cartridges comprise at least one fluidic channel. Each fluidic channel comprises a sample chamber, a lysis chamber, a binding chamber, a pre-amplification region, and an amplification region. The sample cartridges also comprise a waste line that is in fluidic connectivity with each fluidic channel. The sample cartridges can interface with a plurality of plungers that are capable of occluding at least one fluidic channel, waste line, and/or optional assay line to limit the transport of fluids into, out of, and/or along at least one fluidic channel by plunging. The invention also provides multi-channel sample cartridges, which are sample cartridges that comprise at least two fluidic channels. In addition, the sample cartridges can house fluids on the cartridge, off the cartridge, or some on the cartridge and some fluids off the cartridge.

The present invention describes an integrated apparatus that enables identification of migratory cells directly from a specimen. The apparatus only requires a small number of cells to perform an assay and includes novel topographic features which can reliably differentiate between migratory and non-migratory cell populations in a sample. Both the spontaneous and chemotactic migration of cancer cells may be measured to distinguish between subpopulations within a tumor sample. The migratory cells identified using the apparatus and methods of the present invention may be separated and further analyzed to distinguish factors promoting metastasis within the population. Cells in the apparatus can be treated with chemotherapeutic or other agents to determine drug strategies to most strongly inhibit migration. The use of optically transparent materials in some embodiments allows a wide range of imaging techniques to be used for in situ imaging of migratory and non-migratory cells in the apparatus. The apparatus and methods of the present invention are useful for predicting the metastatic propensity of tumor cells and selecting optimal drugs for personalized therapies.

A fluid processing system may include a flow control cassette comprising at least one interface sensor chamber in fluid communication with at least one of a plurality of separate channels, the at least one interface sensor chamber defined at least in part by a wall, and at least one capacitive sensor disposed on the wall of the at least one interface sensor chamber. The fluid processing system may include, in the alternative or in addition, at least one syringe comprising a wall defining a barrel having a first end and a second end, the barrel having a bore with or without a piston or plunger disposed therein, and at least one capacitive sensor disposed on an outer surface of the wall of the syringe.

A microfluidic device includes a lower casing and an upper casing covering the lower casing. The lower casing includes a lower base wall having a top surface and a plurality of spaced-apart columns that protrude upwards from the top surface. The upper casing includes an upper base wall. A first gap between the upper base wall and a column top surface of each of the columns is large enough to permit passage of large biological particles of a liquid sample, and a second gap between any two adjacent ones of the columns is not large enough to permit passage of the large biological particles and is large enough to permit passage of small biological particles of the liquid sample.

A receiving unit for receiving a fluid has a receiving element with a receiving face and at least one micro-cavity that is arranged and formed in the receiving element on the receiving face in order to receive the fluid. The receiving face further has a hydrophilic surface characteristic in at least one subregion adjoining the at least one micro-cavity.

The present disclosure provides a microfluidic chip and a droplet separation method, and belongs to the field of biological chip technology. The microfluidic chip includes a first liquid tank and a second liquid tank opposite to each other and a channel layer therebetween. The channel layer includes a plurality of microfluidic channels separated from each other, first ends of the microfluidic channels are communicated with the first liquid tank, and second ends are communicated with the second liquid tank. The first liquid tank contains sample solution to be detected, and the second liquid tank contains encapsulating liquid. The sample solution to be detected entering the first liquid tank may be separated into a plurality of sample droplets through the microfluidic channels, the separated sample droplets enter the second liquid tank, so that the encapsulating liquid is encapsulated on a surface of each of the plurality of sample droplets.

The present invention generally relates to droplet libraries and to systems and methods for the formation of libraries of droplets. The present invention also relates to methods utilizing these droplet libraries in various biological, chemical, or diagnostic assays.