The present invention relates to a tube for collecting specimens. The tube includes a tubular body having an inner surface which defines a hollow space for carrying a carrier solution or the like. The tube also includes a plurality of ridges projecting inwardly from the inner surface for engagement with at least a portion of a specimen collection tool for facilitating release of at least some of specimens therefrom.

Disclosed herein are devices, methods, and systems for separating one or more biological particles from a fluid sample. The devices may comprise a substrate with a fluidic channel disposed therein. The fluidic channel has disposed therein an array of obstacles with a vertical spacing. The vertical spacing may be configured to separate one or more particles from a fluid stream when the stream flows through the fluidic channel. The devices, methods, and systems may be able to separate various types of biological particles at a high efficiency, sensitivity, and/or specificity.

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 current invention concerns a sample vial for receiving a liquid cell sample, to be used in conjunction with a digital holographic microscope (DHM), said sample vial comprises at least two compartments in fluid connection with one another, said compartments comprising at least one pair of screening surfaces, said screening surfaces are essentially flat; and characterized in that the distance between the pair of screening surfaces of the second compartment is smaller than the distance between the pair of screening surfaces of the first compartment. In a second and third aspect, the current invention pertains to a method and system for analyzing a liquid cell sample by DHM, employing the sample vial of the current invention.

A method for multiplying DNA includes using a rotation device to rotate a sample carrier about an axis of rotation. The sample carrier has at least one cavity in which a sample liquid containing DNA is received. The cavity is heated to a high temperature value only on a heat input side lying in a rotation plane by using a heating device. As a result of the heating, a convection current is created in the sample liquid in the cavity, the convection current having substantial current components directed perpendicularly to the rotation plane. A circulation time of a liquid particle along a current path of the convection current is predetermined by the speed of the rotation. A rotation device for multiplying DNA and a system for multiplying DNA, are also provided.

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.

Disclosed are devices and methods useful for confined-channel digital microfluidics that combine high-throughput droplet generators with digital microfluidic for droplet manipulation. The present disclosure also provides an off-chip sensing system for droplet tracking.

An imaging system for imaging biological samples includes at least one main channel including at least one imaging space, the at least one main channel configured to transport the samples in a fluid, at least one reorientation unit configured to manipulate an orientation of the samples in the fluid, and at least one imaging unit configured to receive detection light emitted by the samples in the at least one imaging space.

The present invention is directed to a method for sorting biological objects including the steps of providing a magnetic device that includes a conduit or channel having upstream and downstream sections and a magnetic means for generating first and second magnetic fields in the upstream and downstream sections, respectively; flowing a sample fluid that includes magnetically labeled biological objects and unlabeled biological objects through the upstream section to magnetically saturate the magnetically labeled biological objects by the first magnetic field; and flowing the sample fluid from the upstream section continuously to the downstream section to collect the magnetically labeled biological objects on a wall of the downstream section by the second magnetic field, wherein the first magnetic field in the upstream section has a higher average field strength than the second magnetic field in the downstream section.