Multi-zone patterning enables hematocrit-independent, precision metering of dried plasma for decentralized diagnostics

Abstract

There has been a notable increase in decentralized sample collection to facilitate diagnostic testing or wellness screening conducted by clinical laboratories. Plasma—not blood—is desired to access a majority of the diagnostic testing menu available to patients. Ideally, the samples of plasma, which are dried after collection to facilitate stable specimen transport by mail, contain discrete and reproducible volumes that are independent of patient hematocrit and maintain the high purity expected from liquid plasma. We have developed a suite of plasma metering cards (PMCs) can divide microsampled plasma from whole blood into multiple sample zones, enabling the metering of reproducible volumes across a wide range of hematocrits (30–55%). Sample zones can be used individually or aggregated together for assays that may require higher volumes. Critically, we show that a four-zone PMC outperforms a commercial plasma microsampling card (ADx 100 Serum Separator Card) in terms of three key performance criteria: total recovered sample volume (25.2 vs. 20.2 µL), sampling precision (CVs of 9.2% vs. 25.8%), and plasma quality (69% vs 26% characterized as below mild hemolysis). These PMCs have the potential to support the rapid growth of decentralized clinical testing by empowering patients to self-collect high-quality dried plasma samples.