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Microfluidic Technologies Diagnose

World’s Return to Normal

By Anne-Françoise Pelé and Maurizio Di Paolo Emilio

s countries work to contain the days to yield results. A rapid test
Covid-19 pandemic, the need for can help contain the number of
effective diagnostic testing has unnecessary visits to health clinics
A been front and center. Accurate, and save lives by reducing the
accessible testing is a precondition for the spread of the virus. Researchers are
population’s gradual return to normal — or, looking to apply microfluidic chips
most likely, a new normal. in coronavirus test protocols.
Microfluidics is a multidisci-
plinary field involving engineering,
physics, biochemistry, and nano-
technology. It deals primarily with
the behavior, precise control, and
handling of geometrically con- Microfluidic chip (Image: darwin-microfluidics.com)
fined fluids on a small (typically
sub-millimetric) scale, in a context
in which capillarity governs mass transport. 10 cm in length. The thickness ranges are
Microfluidic technology thus proves to be from about 0.5 mm to 5 mm.
very suitable for the definition of the test The flow of liquids through the channel net-
structure used in many fields of biological work can be induced by various systems, such
research and has the potential to offer rapid as pressure regulators, syringes, and hydro-
diagnostic tools. static pressure. Microfluidic units are used to
Yole Développement’s In a typical approach using a microfluidic measure molecular diffusion coefficients, fluid
Sébastien Clerc chip, a small volume of fluid is injected in viscosity, pH, and required chemical coeffi-
micron-scale channels by using a pump, cients. Microfluidic PCR chips have already
Diagnostics companies have mobilized their allowing precise control of the microenviron- been used to detect viruses and bacteria and
resources and readied tens of tests, sometimes ment to reduce mass and heat transfer times. could offer excellent functionality in the
within weeks. In the face of the health emer- It thus requires smaller samples and less RT-PCR workflow for diagnosing Covid-19.
gency, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration reagant, enabling greater efficiency at a lower Microfluidic approaches have several
and other regulatory bodies have lowered cost compared with conventional methods. advantages over other conventional solutions:
their standards and granted “Emergency Use Different types of pumps precisely move faster reaction times, higher sensitivity, better
Authorizations” for some of the tests. Since liquid inside the chip at a rate of 1 μL/ temperature control, automation, and easier
mid-March, companies including GenMark, minute to 10,000 μL/minute. The form factor parallelization with microelectromechanical
BioFire, Cepheid, and Mesa Biotech have is usually transparent and measures 1 cm to system (MEMS) solutions.
received approvals for their microfluidic-based
rapid molecular testing for SARS-CoV-2, the
pathogen that causes Covid-19.
A new dynamic of innovation is emerging
around the world, and it seems obvious that
there will be a before and after Covid-19.
“The pandemic will certainly leave its mark
on the way we work, produce, and live in
society,” Sébastien Clerc, technology and
market analyst in microfluidics, sensing,
and actuating at Yole Développement (Lyon,
France), told EE Times Europe. The structure
of the diagnostics industry will change as it
intensifies its R&D activity and continues to
consolidate. Overall, the microfluidics market
will grow at a CAGR of 11.7% to US$17.4
billion in 2024, Yole predicts.

MICROFLUIDICS EXPLAINED
The Covid-19 test protocol includes a real-
time reverse-transcription polymerase chain
reaction (RT-PCR) test of a person’s saliva or
nasal sample and may currently take several

www.eetimes.eu | JUNE 2020