Aliaa I. Shallan

Recent advances in enhancing the sensitivity of electrophoresis and electrochromatography in capillaries and microchips (2010-2012)

CE has been alive for over two decades now, yet its sensitivity is still regarded as being inferior to that of more traditional methods of separation such as HPLC. As such, it is unsurprising that overcoming this issue still generates much scientific interest. This review continues to update this series of reviews, first published in Electrophoresis in 2007, with updates published in 2009 and 2011 and covers material published through to June 2012. It includes developments in the field of stacking, covering all methods from field amplified sample stacking and large volume sample stacking, through to isotachophoresis, dynamic pH junction and sweeping. Attention is also given to online or inline extraction methods that have been used for electrophoresis.

Cost-Effective Three-Dimensional Printing of Visibly Transparent Microchips within Minutes

One-step fabrication of transparent three-dimensional (3D) microfluidic to millifluidic devices was demonstrated using a commercial 3D printer costing

Electrokinetics for sample preparation of biological molecules in biological samples using microfluidic systems

2300 with 500 mL of clear resin for

Electrokinetic Size and Mobility Traps for On‐site Therapeutic Drug Monitoring

138. It employs dynamic mask projection stereolithography, allowing fast concept-to-chip time. The fully automated system allows fabrication of models of up to 43 mm × 27 mm × 180 mm (x × y × z) at printing speeds of 20 mm/h in height regardless of the design complexity. The minimal cross sectional area of 250 μm was achieved for monolithic microchannels and 200 μm for positive structures (templates for soft lithography). The colorless resins good light transmittance (>60% transmission at wavelengths of >430 nm) allows for on-chip optical detection, while the electrically insulating material allows electrophoretic separations. To demonstrate its applicability in microfluidics, the printer was used for the fabrication of a micromixer, a gradient generator, a droplet extractor, and a device for isotachophoresis. The mixing and gradient formation units were incorporated into a device for analysis of nitrate in tap water with standard addition as a single run and multiple depth detection cells to provide an extended linear range.

Tuneable nanochannel formation for sample-in/answer-out devices

Sample preparation is the first part of every analytical method, but is often considered only after the optimization of the method. It is traditionally performed using a range of techniques requiring extensive manual handling, with solid-phase extraction, liquid-liquid extraction, protein precipitation and ultracentrfiguation, among others, being used depending on the targets and the application. In this article, we will focus on alternatives based on electrokinetics for applications including sample clean-up, concentration and derivatization of large biological molecules (DNA, peptides and proteins) of diagnostic importance, as well as small molecules as a tool for therapeutic drug monitoring. This article describes these approaches in terms of mechanisms, applicability and potential to be integrated into a lab-on-a-chip device for directly processing biological samples. Examples dealing with treated or clean samples have been excluded except where they show exceptionally high value.

Capillary Electrophoresis: Basic Principles

The extraction of target analytes from biological samples is a bottleneck in analysis. A microfluidic device featuring an electrokinetic size and mobility trap was formed by two nanojunctions of different pore size to extract and concentrate analytical targets from complex samples. The trap was seamlessly coupled with electrophoretic separation for quantitative analysis. The device was applied to the analysis of ampicillin levels in blood within 5 min and a linear response over the range of 2.5-20 μg mL(-1). This covers the recommended levels for treating sepsis, a critical condition with 30 to 50% mortality and unpredicted drug levels. The device provides a new opportunity for on-site therapeutic drug monitoring, which should enable quick and accurate dosing and may save lives in such critical conditions.

Cost Effective 3D-Printing of Visibly Transparent Microchips within Minutes

Control of the dielectric breakdown of PDMS was achieved by limiting the current during the breakdown process. This enabled tuning of the nanochannel pore size and hence their permeability for molecules of different molecular weights. This method enabled the analysis of the drug quinine from whole blood in 3 min using a simple, disposable microfluidic device.

Electrokinetic Properties of Lubricin Antiadhesive Coatings in Microfluidic Systems

Capillary electrophoresis is one of the most powerful liquid phase separation techniques. It is renowned for its speed, resolution, simplicity, and the small sample and reagent requirements. It is exceptionally versatile, and a number of different and complementary separation mechanisms can be employed simply by changing the composition of the liquid inside the capillary. Here, the fundamental concepts of electrophoresis when implemented in capillaries and microchips are introduced.