Sending Diagnostic Results by Phone

A disposable microfluidic chip can serve as a kind of portable laboratory, analyzing blood samples and sending them via a mobile phone to a doctor.

The chip measures quantities of specific biomarkers such as C-reactive protein (CRP) or troponin I in a blood sample. A micro pump, based on paraffin expansion and powered by the mobile phone battery, pushes the sample through channels, filters, and the reaction chamber on the chip. A camera then reads the test results as light signals off the chip. This process is based on bioluminescence, the same chemical reaction that makes fireflies glow. After only a few minutes, the results can be sent to a doctor over a mobile phone network or the Internet. The only additional equipment the micro laboratory needs is a mobile phone with a digital camera.

This portable lab was developed by researchers from Uppsala University, Malardalens University College, and the University Hospital in Uppsala (Sweden). They aim to enhance the chip's functionalities even further in order to allow the conduction of several parallel blood analyses.

"The finalized chip has the potential to respond to any biomarker for which there is an existing antibody,” noted Jonas Astrom, project manager for Uppsala Bio-X (www.uppsalabio.com), a cross-disciplinary research program based on cutting-edge science founded by Uppsala University and the Swedish University of Agricultural Science.





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