A €3.6 million project co-funded by a European Union Framework Programme is developing a biosensor platform for the point-of-care diagnosis of cerebrovascular disease. The P3SENS (Polymer Photonic multiParametric biochemical SENSor for point-of-care diagnostics) consortium has been formed to develop an immunoassay detection device suitable for use in emergency medicine, whether diagnosis is required in an ambulance, emergency room or as part of a rapid near-patient laboratory test in a hospital environment. The requirement for such a technology to be standalone, without the infrastructure associated with a laboratory, dictates that a number of key processes be completed automatically within the system. The ability of a biosensor platform to manipulate liquid samples and deliver any biomarkers which may be present to the surface of the sensor in a manner which ensures accurate and reliable detection is critical.
Parallel channels
The aim of the P3SENS project is to design, develop and realise robust microfluidic systems that are applicable to fast and cost-effective sample transport while incorporating some simple sample preparation functions (eg mixing or dilution). Preliminary microfluidic structures have been designed that take into consideration the proposed layout of the sensor chip and the material requirements. The microfluidics are to contain six parallel, individually addressable channels with the integrated functions of washing and mixing by applying different mixer components.
Polymer selection
The key issue of integration and final applicability of the developed structure is an appropriate polymer material selection, which will have a critical impact on the requirement for leakage-free bonding. The polymer materials which are most suitable for realising simple microfluidic systems have been identified as polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and the epoxy-based SU-8. These materials are relatively cheap and can be easily structured by the combination of microlithography and polymer technology. The fabrication process has been established for both PDMS and SU-8 polymer materials, and test structures are currently being validated.
Polymers to proteomics
The completion of these significant milestones, showing the development of new microfluidic structures, is rapidly moving the P3SENS consortium towards its goal to produce a biosensor platform and demonstrate applicability to the point-of-care diagnosis of cerebrovascular disease. The consortium is continuing its multidisciplinary approach with parallel activities driving forward development in polymer materials, photonic crystal fabrication, optical and fluidic systems, and biomedical proteomics.
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