Microfluidic Acoustophoresis for Flowthrough Separation of Gram-Negative Bacteria using Aptamer Affinity Beads

J Vis Exp. 2022 Oct 17:(188). doi: 10.3791/63300.

Abstract

This article describes the fabrication and operation of microfluidic acoustophoretic chips using a microfluidic acoustophoresis technique and aptamer-modified microbeads that can be used for the fast, efficient isolation of Gram-negative bacteria from a medium. This method enhances the separation efficiency using a mix of long, square microchannels. In this system, the sample and buffer are injected into the inlet port through a flow controller. For bead centering and sample separation, AC power is applied to the piezoelectric transducer via a function generator with a power amplifier to generate acoustic radiation force in the microchannel. There is a bifurcated channel at both the inlet and outlet, enabling simultaneous separation, purification, and concentration. The device has a recovery rate of >98% and purity of 97.8% up to a 10x dose concentration. This study has demonstrated a recovery rate and purity higher than the existing methods for separating bacteria, suggesting that the device can separate bacteria efficiently.

Publication types

  • Video-Audio Media
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Cell Separation / methods
  • Gram-Negative Bacteria
  • Microfluidic Analytical Techniques* / methods
  • Microfluidics*
  • Microspheres