title: Label-Free and Continuous-Flow Ferrohydrodynamic Separation of HeLa Cells and Blood Cells in Biocompatible Ferrofluids.
abstract: In this study, a label-free, low-cost, and fast ferrohydrodynamic cell separation scheme is demonstrated using HeLa cells (an epithelial cell line) and red blood cells. The separation is based on cell size difference, and conducted in a custom-made biocompatible ferrofluid that retains the viability of cells during and after the assay for downstream analysis. The scheme offers moderate-throughput (≈106cells h-1for a single channel device) and extremely high recovery rate (>99%) without the use of any label. It is envisioned that this separation scheme will have clinical applications in settings where rapid cell enrichment and removal of contaminating blood will improve efficiency of screening and diagnosis such as cervical cancer screening based on mixed populations in exfoliated samples.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, The University of Georgia Athens, GA 30602, USA.
authors.forename: Wujun
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, The University of Georgia Athens, GA 30602, USA.
authors.forename: Taotao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.affiliation: College of Engineering, The University of Georgia, 220 Riverbend Road Room, 166, Athens, GA 30602, USA.
authors.forename: Rui
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics and Astronomy, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USA.
authors.forename: Yufei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics and Astronomy, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USA.
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Complex Carbohydrate Research Center, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA.
authors.forename: Hong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Qiu
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Complex Carbohydrate Research Center, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA.
authors.forename: Lianchun
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA.
authors.forename: Tamas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nagy
authors.affiliation: Chronic Viral Diseases Branch, Division of High-Consequence Pathogens and Pathology, National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic, Infectious Diseases Pathology, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA.
authors.forename: Troy D
authors.initials: TD
authors.lastname: Querec
authors.affiliation: Chronic Viral Diseases Branch, Division of High-Consequence Pathogens and Pathology, National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic, Infectious Diseases Pathology, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA.
authors.forename: Elizabeth R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Unger
authors.affiliation: College of Engineering, The University of Georgia, 220 Riverbend Road Room, 166, Athens, GA 30602, USA.
authors.forename: Leidong
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Mao