Lab on a Chip – past, present, and future
We check in with past, present, and future Editors-in-Chief, including Andreas Manz (2001–2008), Abe Lee (2017–2020), and Aaron Wheeler (2021–), about the state of the field.
Predicting the future
Andreas Manz discusses his thoughts on predicting the future.
Editorial
Miniaturised nucleic acid analysis
The application of micro-total analysis systems has grown exponentially over the past few years, particularly in disciplines involving bioassays. This review aims to detail recent approaches to sample preparation, nucleic acid amplification and detection within microfluidic devices or at the microscale level.
Critical Review
Polymerase chain reaction in microfluidic devices
Developments of microfluidic-based time/space domain PCR, digital PCR, and isothermal nucleic acid amplification.
Sub-second isoelectric focusing in free flow using a microfluidic device
Paper
Handheld real-time PCR device
World's smallest, fully autonomous, handheld real-time PCR was shown in this contribution. The device can quickly process up to four samples at a time with detection capability of a single DNA copy. The fully integrated system includes all required electronics for fluorescence measurement, data viewing (LCD display) and processing, and is ideal for use in small clinics and point-of-care applications.
Paper
From chip-in-a-lab to lab-on-a-chip: towards a single handheld electronic system for multiple application-specific lab-on-a-chip (ASLOC)
We present a portable, battery-operated and application-specific lab-on-a-chip (ASLOC) system that can be easily configured for a wide range of lab-on-a-chip applications.
A facile in situ microfluidic method for creating multivalent surfaces: toward functional glycomics
A microfluidic in situ method to modify the chemistry and topology of the environment with beads and to mimic the in vivo cellular mechanisms is proposed. Colon tumour cells, incubated inside the microfluidic assay based on carbohydrates, are depleted by a sample of normal and tumor cells with an efficiency decreasing from 80% to 20% with the flow rate.
Phaseguides: a paradigm shift in microfluidic priming and emptying
Phaseguide technology gives complete control over filling and emptying of microfluidic structures, independent of the chamber and channel geometry.
On-chip extrusion of lipid vesicles and tubes through microsized apertures
In this work a novel approach for fabrication of soft-matter microstructured devices is presented. Lipid vesicles and tubes with perfectly homogeneous diameter and extraordinary length are formed on a microchip by extrusion of a lipid membrane through microsized apertures.
Counting and sizing of particles and particle agglomerates in a microfluidic device using laser light scattering: application to a particle-enhanced immunoassay
Glow discharge in microfluidic chips for visible analog computing
Wavelet transform for Shah convolution velocity measurements of single particles and solutes in a microfluidic chip
Modular approach to fabrication of three-dimensional microchannel systems in PDMS—application to sheath flow microchips
Massively parallel production of lipid microstructures
In this article we describe a simple microfluidic device with a porous membrane for lipid microstructuring by interfacing lipid films with hydrodynamic and electrokinetic flows.