Abstract:
The present invention relates to a platelet activation device and, more particularly, to a platelet activation device having a multi-channel blood passage, which applies capillary stress to a biological fluid including platelets, thereby activating the platelets included in the blood. The present invention provides an activation structure having multiple microchannels, the structure comprising at least one blood passage, each of which has the same width and comprises multiple bent portions, wherein, while blood successively passes through the multiple bent portions, physical stress is applied to the platelets included in the blood, thereby inducing activation of the platelets, and ⅓ of the amount of blood is distributed to each blood passage, so as to correspond to the number of blood passages, thereby substantially reducing the number of reciprocating movements of blood and shortening the platelet activation time to a large extent.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
       [0001]    The present invention relates to a platelet activation device, and more particularly, to a platelet activation device having a multi-channel blood passage that applies capillary stress to a biological fluid including platelets to activate the platelets contained in the blood. 
       BACKGROUND ART 
       [0002]    Blood carries out various functions. For example, blood delivers oxygen taken by lungs to tissue cells, and transports carbon dioxide from tissues to the outside of lungs. Blood delivers nutrients absorbed by alimentary canal to organs or tissue cells. Blood transports degradation products of tissues, which are unnecessary for the living body, to a kidney and discharges them to the outside of the body. Blood delivers hormones secreted by endocrine glands to acting organs or tissues, and keeps body temperature constant by equally distributing body heat. In addition, blood destroys or detoxifies invading germs or foreign substances. 
         [0003]    Such blood is used as an important index for determining various diseases or health conditions. Platelets abundantly containing growth factors in the blood are used for therapeutic purposes. Blood is composed of red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. The platelets mainly exist in plasma. The plasma is divided into platelet rich plasma (PRP) and platelet poor plasma (PPP). The PRP is transplanted into a pain area, in particular, knees, ligaments, muscles, and the like, and stimulates stem cells to help creating cells. As such, the PRP has been used for therapeutic purposes. 
         [0004]    It has been known that platelets in the PRP are 2-7 times more than platelets in general blood, and growth factors created and secreted from the platelets promote cell regeneration of a wounded area, thereby helping wound healing and regeneration of cells or tissue. To more improve the effects of the PRP, a method in which a chemical substance such as calcium in Korea and collagen and thrombin in foreign countries or platelet activating protein is added to activate platelets in advance so that the platelets secrete the growth factors, and then, the injection is administered has been used in clinical tests (Lacoste E et al., J Periodntol. 74(10):1498-507(2003)). 
         [0005]    However, if calcium is injected into cartilage, it signifies nothing because calcium is neutralized. If calcium is injected into subcutaneous fat, side effects such as blush, rash, and pain induction occur. Also, since thrombin and collagen directly act to coagulate blood, if thrombin and collagen are injected into patients without being completely separated, thrombin and collagen may act as potential risk factors. Thus, there is a need to improve the method of adding these substances. A report in which physical stress is applied to active platelets, instead of adding a chemical activation factor, is disclosed in “T W Chow et al. Blood, 80:113-120 (1992)”. Also, Korean Patent Application Publication No. 10-2012-0129779 (published on Nov. 28, 2012) has been proposed based on the report. 
         [0006]    Korean Patent Application Publication No. 10-2012-0129779 discloses a platelet activation device including: a passage which has an inner diameter of 2 mm or less and through which capillary stress is applied to a biological fluid containing platelets; an accommodation part for the passage; and at least one entrance which is formed in both distal ends of the accommodation part and through which the biological fluid is injected or discharged. The platelet activation device obtains activated platelets by repeatedly passing through the capillary passage having a relatively short length. 
         [0007]    However, in Korean Patent Application Publication No. 10-2012-0129779, the passage has a structure in which a narrow region and a wide region are alternately formed, and the platelets are activated therethrough. In such a structure, since a plurality of patterns have to be alternately formed in the fine passage, it may be difficult to manufacture the passage. Also, since the passage is provided as a single channel, the number of reciprocating movements of blood inevitably increases according to an amount of blood so as to achieve the satisfactory activation of the platelets. Consequently, it takes a long time to activate the platelets. 
       CITATION LIST 
     Patent Literature 
       [0008]    (Patent Document 1) KR 10-2012-0129779 A (Nov. 28, 2012) 
       SUMMARY OF INVENTION 
     Technical Problem 
       [0009]    Therefore, the present invention has been made in an effort to solve the problems of the related art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a platelet activation device having a multi-channel blood passage, which has a simple structure as compared to the related art, whereby the platelet activation device is easy to manufacture and is capable of reducing the platelet activation time. 
       Solution to Problem 
       [0010]    According to an aspect for achieving the above object, a platelet activation device having a multi-channel blood passage includes: a main body including one side having an injection hole through which blood is injected, the other side having a discharge hole through which the blood is discharged, and a coupling groove disposed between the one side and the other side; and an activation structure inserted into the coupling groove of the main body and airtightly fused and coupled to the coupling groove, the activation structure having a bottom surface on which multiple microchannels are disposed in parallel with the same width, so that the blood injected through the injection hole passes through the multiple microchannels and are discharged through the discharge hole  12 - 3   a , wherein the multiple microchannels may include at least one blood passage having the same width, and the blood passage includes a plurality of bent portions. 
         [0011]    Preferably, each of the plurality of bent portions may have an angle of 110° to 135°. 
         [0012]    Preferably, the blood passage may have a structure in which one side and the other side thereof are formed on the same line and four bent portions are formed in a central portion thereof. 
         [0013]    Preferably, the platelet activation device blood may further include an upper cover covering an upper portion of the activation structure and a lower cover coupled to the upper cover to cover a lower portion of the main body, in a state in which the activation structure is airtightly fused and coupled to the coupling groove of the main body. 
       Advantageous Effects of Invention 
       [0014]    As described above, the present invention provides the activation structure having the multiple microchannels, which include three blood passages having the same width, wherein each of the blood passages has four bent portions each having an angle of 110° to 135° in an extending direction thereof. Accordingly, while the blood successively passes through the four bent portions, the physical stress is applied to the platelets contained in the blood to induce the activation of the platelets, and ⅓ of the amount of blood is distributed to each of the blood passages, so as to correspond to the number of blood passages, thereby substantially reducing the number of reciprocating movements of blood and shortening the platelet activation time to a large extent. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
         [0015]      FIG. 1  is an assembled perspective view of a platelet activation device having a multi-channel blood passage according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0016]      FIG. 2  is an exploded perspective view of the platelet activation device of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0017]      FIG. 3  is a plan view of the platelet activation device of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0018]      FIG. 4  is cross-sectional views respectively taken along lines A′-A″ and B′-B″ of  FIG. 3 . 
           [0019]      FIG. 5  is a bottom view of an activation structure according to the present invention. 
           [0020]      FIG. 6  is a view of a main body according to the present invention. 
           [0021]      FIG. 7  is a view of the activation structure according to the present invention. 
           [0022]      FIG. 8  is a view of an upper cover and a lower cover according to the present invention. 
           [0023]      FIG. 9  is a view illustrating a state in which the upper cover and the lower cover of  FIG. 8  are assembled with each other. 
       
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF REFERENCE NUMERALS 
       [0000]    
       
         
           
               10 : platelet activation device 
               11 : activation structure 
               12 : main body 
               12 - 1 : first coupling part 
               12 - 2 : second coupling part 
               12 - 3 : third coupling part 
               13 : upper cover 
               14 : lower cover 
           
         
       
     
       DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS 
       [0032]    Advantages and features of the present invention and implementation methods thereof will be clarified through the following embodiments described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The present invention may, however, be embodied in different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. 
         [0033]    In this specification, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the present invention to those skilled in the art. Also, the present invention is only defined by the scope of claims. Accordingly, in some embodiments, well-known components, well-known device operations, and well-known techniques will not be described in detail to avoid ambiguous interpretation of the present invention. 
         [0034]    Throughout this disclosure, like reference numerals are used to refer to like elements. Also, in the following description, the technical terms are used (mentioned) only for explaining specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present invention. In this specification, the terms of a singular form may include plural forms, unless stated referred to the contrary. As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. 
         [0035]    It will also be understood that the terms “comprises”, “includes”, and “has”, when used herein, specify the presence of stated elements or operations, but do not preclude the presence or addition of other elements or operations, unless otherwise defined. 
         [0036]    Unless otherwise defined, all terms including technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains. It will be further understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein. 
         [0037]    Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
         [0038]      FIG. 1  is an assembled perspective view for explaining a platelet activation device having a multi-channel blood passage according to an embodiment of the present invention,  FIG. 2  is an exploded perspective view of the platelet activation device of  FIG. 1 ,  FIG. 3  is a plan view of the platelet activation device of  FIG. 1 , and  FIG. 4  is cross-sectional views respectively taken along lines A′-A″ and B′-B″ of  FIG. 3 . 
         [0039]    Referring to  FIGS. 1 to 4 , a platelet activation device  10  having a multi-channel blood passage according to an embodiment of the present invention includes an activation structure  11  and a main body  12 . Also, as illustrated in  FIGS. 8 and 9 , the platelet activation device  10  may further include an upper cover  13  and a lower cover  14 . 
         [0040]    As illustrated in  FIG. 2 , the main body  12  includes a first coupling part  12 - 1  having a coupling groove  12 - 1   a  into which the activation structure  11  is inserted and then airtightly fused through a high frequency welding machine, and second and third coupling parts  12 - 2  and  12 - 3  which protrude from both sides of the first coupling part  12 - 1  and are coupled to a blood injector, e.g., a syringe (not shown). 
         [0041]    As illustrated in  FIG. 2 , the first coupling part  12 - 1  has a rectangular box structure with an upper portion opened. Also, a bottom portion of the coupling groove  12 - 1   a , to which the activation structure  11  is inserted and coupled in a press-fit manner, has a flat surface so as to provide blood passages, through which the blood passes, together with multiple microchannels  11   a  formed in a bottom surface of the activation structure  11 . 
         [0042]    As illustrated in  FIG. 4 , the second and third coupling parts  12 - 2  and  12 - 3  have coupling protrusions  12 - 2   b  and  12 - 3   b  on longitudinal ends so as to be coupled to the blood injector, respectively. An injection hole  12 - 2   a  and a discharge hole  12 - 3   a , which communicate with the multiple microchannels  11   a , are provided in the second and third coupling parts  12 - 2  and  12 - 3 , respectively. 
         [0043]      FIG. 5  is a bottom view for explaining the activation structure according to the present invention. 
         [0044]    Referring to  FIGS. 2 and 5 , the activation structure  11  may be made of a transparent synthetic resin material so as to recognize a blood flow. The activation structure  11  is inserted into the coupling groove  12 - 1   a  of the main body  12  and then coupled to the coupling groove  12 - 1   a  in a state of being airtightly fused through the high frequency welding machine, and the multiple microchannels  11   a  are disposed in parallel with the same width on the bottom surface of the activation structure  11 , so that the blood injected through the injection hole  12 - 2   a  passes through the multiple microchannels  11   a  and are discharged through the discharge hole  12 - 3   a.    
         [0045]    As illustrated in  FIG. 5 , the multiple microchannels  11   a  include three blood passages, and each of the three blood passages includes four bent portions in an extending direction thereof. In this regard, it is preferable that the four bent portions respectively have angles θ 1  to θ 4  of 110° to 135°. 
         [0046]    Also, as illustrated in  FIGS. 5 and 7 , each of the three blood passages constituting the multiple microchannels  11   a  has one side and the other side formed on the same line. Here, each blood passage may have a structure in which four bent portions are formed at a central portion thereof or a stair-shaped structure that is gradually stepped upward from one side to the other side thereof. As illustrated in  FIGS. 5 and 7 , when an injection molding process is performed, one side and the other side may be formed on the same line in terms of a manufacturing process or a spatial margin. Here, it is preferable that the each blood passage has a structure in which the four bent portions are formed at the central portion. 
         [0047]    According to the present invention, the multiple microchannels  11   a  having the three blood channels are provided on the bottom surface of the activation structure  11 . Each of the three blood passages includes four bent portions in an extending direction thereof. The four bent portions have angles θ 1  to θ 4  of 110° to 135° to minimize a pressure applied when the blood is reciprocated so as to apply capillary stress, and ⅓ of the amount of blood is distributed to each of the blood passages, so as to correspond to the number of blood passages and thus apply the stress, thereby implementing the activation for a short time even when the amount of blood is large. 
         [0000]    
       
         
               
               
             
               
               
               
               
             
               
               
               
               
             
           
               
                   
                 TABLE 1 
               
             
             
               
                   
                   
               
               
                   
                 Blood passage 
               
               
                   
                 structure 
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                   
                 Uneven structure 
                   
               
               
                   
                   
                 (single channel 
               
               
                   
                 Linear type 
                 disclosed in KR 
               
               
                   
                 (single channel 
                 10-2012-0129779 A 
               
               
                   
                 having the same 
                 (Nov. 28, 
                 Present 
               
               
                   
                 width) 
                 2012) 
                 invention 
               
               
                   
                   
               
             
          
           
               
                 Number of 
                 20 times 
                 15 times 
                 5-7 times 
               
               
                 reciprocating 
               
               
                 movements of 
               
               
                 blood 
               
               
                   
               
             
          
         
       
     
         [0048]    Table 1 above shows the number of reciprocating movements of blood when an activation device having different blood passages was used to activate 5 cc of blood until having the same activation property. In the linear type single channel structure having the same width, the number of reciprocating movements of blood was about 20 times. In the single channel structure disclosed in KR Patent Publication No. 10-2012-0129779 as the related art, the number of reciprocating movements of blood was about 15 times. However, in the multiple microchannel structure having the three blood passages on the bottom surface thereof according to the present invention, the number of reciprocating movements of blood was about 5-7 times. It can be seen from the above result that the number of reciprocating movements of blood is significantly reduced. 
         [0049]    In conclusion, the multiple microchannels  11   a  according to the present invention may include the three blood passages having the same width, and each of the blood passages may have the four bent portions in the extending direction thereof. Also, each of the bent portions may be formed at an angle of 110° to 135°, and thus, the physical stress may be applied to the platelets contained in the blood while the blood passes through the four bent portions to thereby induce the activation of the platelets. In addition, ⅓ of the amount of blood may be distributed to each of the blood passages, so as to correspond to the number of blood passages, thereby substantially reducing the number of reciprocating movements of blood and shortening the platelet activation time to a large extent. 
         [0050]      FIG. 6  is a view of the main body according to the present invention,  FIG. 7  is a view of the activation structure according to the present invention,  FIG. 8  is a view of the upper cover and the lower cover according to the present invention, and  FIG. 9  is a view illustrating a state in which the upper cover and the lower cover of  FIG. 8  are coupled to each other. 
         [0051]    As illustrated in  FIGS. 6 and 7 , it can be confirmed that the multiple microchannels  11   a  having the three blood passages are formed on the bottom surface of the activation structure  11  according to the present invention. 
         [0052]    As illustrated in  FIGS. 8 and 9 , the platelet activation device  10  according to the present invention may further include the upper cover  13  and the lower cover  14  so as to protect the activation structure  11  and the main body  12 . 
         [0053]    The upper cover  13  and the lower cover  14  are made of a synthetic resin material and detachably coupled to each other. The upper cover  13  covers and protects the upper portion of the activation structure  11  in a state in which the activation structure  11  is airtightly fused and coupled to the coupling groove  12 - 1   a  of the main body  12 , and the lower cover  14  is detachably coupled to the upper cover  13  to cover and protect the lower portion of the main body  12 . 
         [0054]    As described above, the technical idea of the present invention has been specifically described with reference to the preferred embodiments, but it should be noted that the foregoing embodiments are provided only for illustration while not limiting the present invention. Also, it can be understood by those skilled in the art that various embodiments can be made through combinations of the embodiments of the present invention.