Immune Function On A Chip

摘要

A chip to test white blood cell response quickly from just a drop of blood has been developed by scientists in the US.rnNeutrophils are the most common white blood cells in the body. They play a key role in immune function, being drawn to a site of infection or injury by a chemical concentration gradient, effectively a trail of attracting molecules released by the distressed cells. The new chip, developed by Daniel Irimia and a team at the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, can both isolate neutrophils from blood and monitor how they migrate in one rapid step.rnCurrent migration-measuring techniques usually require a separate step to isolate neutrophils, involving large sample volumes and lengthy procedures not suited to miniaturisation. Irimia's method needs smaller volumes and avoids the extra step by capturing thernneutrophils in the chip, in a chamber coated with cell adhesion molecules.