An automated microfluidic system based on V-groove chip for rapid immunohistochemistry

Abstract

The demand for efficient detection of tumor biomarkers in clinical settings is growing. Traditional immunohistochemistry (IHC) is time-consuming and labor-intensive, making rapid IHC technologies essential for improving efficiency in pathological diagnosis. Microfluidic technology, characterized by miniaturization, high throughput, and automation, has emerged as one of the most promising approaches for advancing rapid tissue diagnostics. This study designed a fluid distribution channel with excellent uniformity and developed a microfluidic chip featuring an upper V-groove structure, based on a passive mixing strategy in microfluidic systems. This chip effectively enhances the mixing efficiency of antigens and antibodies without relying on external field-driven mechanisms. Furthermore, a novel, automated, and integrated microfluidic platform was constructed to achieve rapid, reliable, and automated immunohistochemical staining. Experimental results demonstrated that the immunohistochemical staining performance obtained with this chip is comparable to that of conventional methods, exhibiting excellent uniformity and reproducibility. The staining time for markers such as CK and Ki-67 in tissue samples can be reduced to 11 minutes, representing a 90% time saving compared to traditional methods.