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Researchers say they have created a biosensor capable of counting blood cells electrically using only a drop of blood.
The microfluidic device can measure red blood cell, platelet, and white blood cell counts using as little as 11 µL of blood.
The device electrically counts the different types of blood cells based on their size and membrane properties.
To count leukocyte and its differentials, red blood cells are selectively lysed, and the remaining white blood cells are individually counted. Specific cells like neutrophils can be counted using multi-frequency analysis, which probes the membrane properties of the cells.
For red blood cells and platelets, 1 µL of whole blood is diluted with PBS on-chip, and the cells are counted electrically. The total time for measurement is under 20 minutes.
The researchers described this device in TECHNOLOGY.
“Our biosensor exhibits the potential to improve patient care in a spectrum of settings,” said Rashid Bashir, PhD, of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
He noted that the device could be particularly useful in resource-limited settings where laboratory tests are often inaccessible due to costs, poor prevalence of laboratory facilities, and the difficulty of follow-up upon receiving results that take days to process.
“There exists a huge potential to translate our biosensor commercially for blood cell count applications,” added Umer Hassan, PhD, of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
“The translation of our technology will result in minimal to no experience requirement for device operation. Even patients can perform the test at the comfort of their home and share the results with their primary care physicians via electronic means too.”
“The technology is scalable, and, in future, we plan to apply it to many other potential applications in the areas of animal diagnostics, blood transfusion analysis, ER/ICU applications, and blood cell counting for chemotherapy management,” Dr Bashir said.
The researchers are now working to further develop a portable prototype of the cell counter.
“The cartridges will be disposable and the size of a credit card,” Dr Umer said. “The base unit or the reader will be portable and possibly hand-held. Our technology has the potential to reduce the cost of the test to less than $10, as compared to $100 or more currently charged.” 
Researchers say they have created a biosensor capable of counting blood cells electrically using only a drop of blood.
The microfluidic device can measure red blood cell, platelet, and white blood cell counts using as little as 11 µL of blood.
The device electrically counts the different types of blood cells based on their size and membrane properties.
To count leukocyte and its differentials, red blood cells are selectively lysed, and the remaining white blood cells are individually counted. Specific cells like neutrophils can be counted using multi-frequency analysis, which probes the membrane properties of the cells.
For red blood cells and platelets, 1 µL of whole blood is diluted with PBS on-chip, and the cells are counted electrically. The total time for measurement is under 20 minutes.
The researchers described this device in TECHNOLOGY.
“Our biosensor exhibits the potential to improve patient care in a spectrum of settings,” said Rashid Bashir, PhD, of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
He noted that the device could be particularly useful in resource-limited settings where laboratory tests are often inaccessible due to costs, poor prevalence of laboratory facilities, and the difficulty of follow-up upon receiving results that take days to process.
“There exists a huge potential to translate our biosensor commercially for blood cell count applications,” added Umer Hassan, PhD, of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
“The translation of our technology will result in minimal to no experience requirement for device operation. Even patients can perform the test at the comfort of their home and share the results with their primary care physicians via electronic means too.”
“The technology is scalable, and, in future, we plan to apply it to many other potential applications in the areas of animal diagnostics, blood transfusion analysis, ER/ICU applications, and blood cell counting for chemotherapy management,” Dr Bashir said.
The researchers are now working to further develop a portable prototype of the cell counter.
“The cartridges will be disposable and the size of a credit card,” Dr Umer said. “The base unit or the reader will be portable and possibly hand-held. Our technology has the potential to reduce the cost of the test to less than $10, as compared to $100 or more currently charged.”
Researchers say they have created a biosensor capable of counting blood cells electrically using only a drop of blood.
The microfluidic device can measure red blood cell, platelet, and white blood cell counts using as little as 11 µL of blood.
The device electrically counts the different types of blood cells based on their size and membrane properties.
To count leukocyte and its differentials, red blood cells are selectively lysed, and the remaining white blood cells are individually counted. Specific cells like neutrophils can be counted using multi-frequency analysis, which probes the membrane properties of the cells.
For red blood cells and platelets, 1 µL of whole blood is diluted with PBS on-chip, and the cells are counted electrically. The total time for measurement is under 20 minutes.
The researchers described this device in TECHNOLOGY.
“Our biosensor exhibits the potential to improve patient care in a spectrum of settings,” said Rashid Bashir, PhD, of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
He noted that the device could be particularly useful in resource-limited settings where laboratory tests are often inaccessible due to costs, poor prevalence of laboratory facilities, and the difficulty of follow-up upon receiving results that take days to process.
“There exists a huge potential to translate our biosensor commercially for blood cell count applications,” added Umer Hassan, PhD, of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
“The translation of our technology will result in minimal to no experience requirement for device operation. Even patients can perform the test at the comfort of their home and share the results with their primary care physicians via electronic means too.”
“The technology is scalable, and, in future, we plan to apply it to many other potential applications in the areas of animal diagnostics, blood transfusion analysis, ER/ICU applications, and blood cell counting for chemotherapy management,” Dr Bashir said.
The researchers are now working to further develop a portable prototype of the cell counter.
“The cartridges will be disposable and the size of a credit card,” Dr Umer said. “The base unit or the reader will be portable and possibly hand-held. Our technology has the potential to reduce the cost of the test to less than $10, as compared to $100 or more currently charged.”