Patent ID: 9029158
Filing Date: 2015-05-12
Classification: B01L,G01N,Y10T

Abstract:
1. A method for analyzing leukocytes in a whole blood sample, the method comprising: a) introducing a modified blood sample comprising fluorescently labelled leukocytes and fluorescently labeled control beads, to an inlet of a first microfluidic channel that gradually narrows and is directly coupled to a second microfluidic channel that has fixed dimensions, wherein the fluorescently labeled leukocytes are labelled with a fluorophore different than a fluorophore label of the control beads, and wherein the second channel having the fixed dimensions of approximately 40 microns by approximately 50 microns, and wherein the first channel and the second channel are obstacle-free; b) flowing the modified blood sample from the inlet of the first microfluidic channel, to the outlet of the second microfluidic channel, whereby decreasing the cross-sectional area increases a core flow rate of the modified blood sample, such that the core flow rate is from approximately 5 microliters/minute at a detection zone located in the second microfluidic channel; c) detecting a level of fluorescence of the fluorescently labelled leukocytes and a level of fluorescence of the fluorescently labelled control beads, as they pass through the detection zone in the second microfluidic channel, by exciting the fluorophores of the fluorescently labelled leukocytes and of the fluorescently labeled control beads, wherein the detection of the leukocytes is performed on individual leukocytes; and d) using the level of fluorescence to thereby provide a result concerning the blood sample.