Cancer Methylation Biomarker Detection in an Automated, Portable, Multichannel Magnetofluidic Platform.

Early detection of cancer is critical to improving clinical outcomes, especially in territories with limited healthcare resources. DNA methylation biomarkers have shown promise in early cancer detection, but typical workflows require highly trained personnel and specialized equipment for manual and lengthy processing, limiting use in resource-constrained areas. As a potential solution, we introduce the Automated Cartridge-based Cancer Early Screening System (ACCESS), a compact, portable, multiplexed, automated platform that performs droplet magnetofluidic- and methylation-specific qPCR-based assays for the detection of DNA methylation cancer biomarkers.

Ratiometric PCR in a Portable Sample-to-Result Device for Broad-Based Pathogen Identification.

Polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based diagnostic testing is the gold standard method for pathogen identification (ID) with recent developments enabling automated PCR tests for point-of-care (POC) use. However, multiplexed identification of several pathogens in PCR assays typically requires optics for an equivalent number of fluorescence channels, increasing instrumentation's complexity and cost. In this study, we first developed ratiometric PCR that surpassed one target per color barrier to allow multiplexed identification while minimizing optical components for affordable POC use.

Magnetofluidic platform for rapid multiplexed screening of SARS-CoV-2 variants and respiratory pathogens.

The rise of highly transmissible SARS-CoV-2 variants brings new challenges and concerns with vaccine efficacy, diagnostic sensitivity, and public health responses in the fight to end the pandemic. Widespread detection of variant strains will be critical to inform policy decisions to mitigate further spread, and post-pandemic multiplexed screening of respiratory viruses will be necessary to properly manage patients presenting with similar respiratory symptoms. In this work, we have developed a portable, magnetofluidic cartridge platform for automated PCR testing in <30 min.