Recent breakthroughs in cryo-electron microscopy imaging technology provide an unprecedented view of biology at the nanoscale. To complement these technical advances, here we demonstrate the use of tunable substrates to streamline the isolation of biological entities from human cells. We have tested the capacity of tunable microchip devices using a variety of samples including virus assemblies and the breast cancer susceptibility protein (BRCA1) produced in cancer cells. Overall, microchip applications may shed light on ill-defined clinical issues related to molecular disease mechanisms.