Issue 5, 2022

Microfluidic capture of chromatin fibres measures neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) released in a drop of human blood

Abstract

Neutrophils are the largest population of white blood cells in the circulation, and their primary function is to protect the body from microbes. They can release the chromatin in their nucleus, forming characteristic web structures and trap microbes, contributing to antimicrobial defenses. The chromatin webs are known as neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs). Importantly, neutrophils can also release NETs in pathological conditions related to rheumatic diseases, atherosclerosis, cancer, and sepsis. Thus, determining the concentration of NETs in the blood is increasingly important for monitoring patients, evaluating treatment efficacy, and understanding the pathology of various diseases. However, traditional methods for measuring NETs require separating cells and plasma from blood, are prone to sample preparation artifacts, and cannot distinguish between intact and degraded NETs. Here, we design a microfluidic analytical tool that captures NETs mechanically from a drop of blood and measures the amount of intact NETs unbiased by the presence of degraded NETs in the sample.

Graphical abstract: Microfluidic capture of chromatin fibres measures neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) released in a drop of human blood

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
13 ዲሴም 2021
Accepted
11 ጃንዩ 2022
First published
14 ጃንዩ 2022

Lab Chip, 2022,22, 936-944

Microfluidic capture of chromatin fibres measures neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) released in a drop of human blood

M. Sakuma, X. Wang, F. Ellett, J. F. Edd, K. A. Babatunde, A. Viens, M. K. Mansour and D. Irimia, Lab Chip, 2022, 22, 936 DOI: 10.1039/D1LC01123E

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements