Sepsis is common and often deadly. Early detection of sepsis can be incredibly useful in preventing its full onset by allowing in-time administration of antibiotics.
A couple of biomarkers of oncoming sepsis is leukocyte count and neutrophil 64 (CD64), a neutrophil surface antigen. Researchers at the University of Illinois have now reported in journal Nature Communications about a new point-of-care microfluidic biochip that only requires 10 μl of whole blood to count leukocytes and determine the concentration of CD64. They confirmed their readings against a traditional flow cytometer on overnight hospital patients and those coming through an emergency room, showing a close correlation between the counts.
The device does not require any preparation, and so can be used by just about anyone able to prick a finger, like diabetics do, to get a drop of blood. If made cheap enough it may be used to regularly assess patients inside intensive care units and monitor the body’s immune response following administration of drugs.
Study in Nature Communications: A point-of-care microfluidic biochip for quantification of CD64 expression from whole blood for sepsis stratification…