title: A high-efficiency superhydrophobic plasma separator.
abstract: To meet stringent limit-of-detection specifications for low abundance target molecules, a relatively large volume of plasma is needed for many blood-based clinical diagnostics. Conventional centrifugation methods for plasma separation are not suitable for on-site testing or bedside diagnostics. Here, we report a simple, yet high-efficiency, clamshell-style, superhydrophobic plasma separator that is capable of separating a relatively large volume of plasma from several hundred microliters of whole blood (finger-prick blood volume). The plasma separator consists of a superhydrophobic top cover with a separation membrane and a superhydrophobic bottom substrate. Unlike previously reported membrane-based plasma separators, the separation membrane in our device is positioned at the top of the sandwiched whole blood film to increase the membrane separation capacity and plasma yield. In addition, the device's superhydrophobic characteristics (i) facilitates the formation of well-defined, contracted, thin blood film with a high contact angle; (ii) minimizes biomolecular adhesion to surfaces; (iii) increases blood clotting time; and (iv) reduces blood cell hemolysis. The device demonstrated a "blood in-plasma out" capability, consistently extracting 65 ± 21.5 μL of plasma from 200 μL of whole blood in less than 10 min without electrical power. The device was used to separate plasma from Schistosoma mansoni genomic DNA-spiked whole blood with a recovery efficiency of >84.5 ± 25.8%. The S. mansoni genomic DNA in the separated plasma was successfully tested on our custom-made microfluidic chip by using loop mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) method.
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, University of Pennsylvania, 210 Towne Building, 220 South 33rd St, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-6315, USA. lchangc@seas.upenn.edu.
authors.forename: Changchun
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, University of Pennsylvania, 210 Towne Building, 220 South 33rd St, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-6315, USA. lchangc@seas.upenn.edu and Department of Biomechatronics Engineering, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Pingtung 912, Taiwan, Republic of China.
authors.forename: Shih-Chuan
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Liao
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, University of Pennsylvania, 210 Towne Building, 220 South 33rd St, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-6315, USA. lchangc@seas.upenn.edu.
authors.forename: Jinzhao
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Song
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, University of Pennsylvania, 210 Towne Building, 220 South 33rd St, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-6315, USA. lchangc@seas.upenn.edu.
authors.forename: Michael G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Mauk
authors.affiliation: Institute for Translational Medicine and Therapeutics, Perelman School of Medicine, USA.
authors.forename: Xuanwen
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, 3231 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
authors.forename: Gaoxiang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, 3231 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
authors.forename: Dengteng
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ge
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathobiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA.
authors.forename: Robert M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Greenberg
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, 3231 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
authors.forename: Shu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, University of Pennsylvania, 210 Towne Building, 220 South 33rd St, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-6315, USA. lchangc@seas.upenn.edu.
authors.forename: Haim H
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Bau
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001781:Blood Component Removal / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods*; D018509:DNA, Helminth / Q000097:blood / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D057927:Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions; D008297:Male; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D010949:Plasma / Q000469:parasitology*; D012550:Schistosoma mansoni
chemical_list: D018509:DNA, Helminth; D008567:Membranes, Artificial