Microfluidic Chips for Biomonitoring

DESCRIPTION provided by applicant One of the most exciting developments in environmental science and technology is the emerging field of andquot exposomicsandquot i e rapid and sensitive detection of large sets of analytes andquot exposomeandquot reflecting the complexity of exposure in the personal environment using human specimens including blood urine and saliva which are likely to be available from both prospective and retrospective epidemiological cohorts However technology platforms that could perform high sensitivity high specificity and multi analyte detection of these samples particularly in small volumes are currently lacking Liquid chromatography electrospray ionization mass spectrometry LC ESI MS is the most powerful technique for large scale quantitative and qualitative analyses of proteins and metabolites i e proteomics and metabolomics Although a variety of mass spectrometry approaches have been used in the National Biomonitoring Program NBP they typically require relatively large sample volumes for plasma and serum analyses because of the extremely low concentrations of target analytes This renders them impractical for population studies of multiple analytes where very small volumes of blood are collected and stored In response to RFA ES Newomics Inc proposes this SBIR Phase II project to complete development of its product the fully integrated silicon microfluidic chips as a new platform for rapid and sensitive biomonitoring of multiple and multiclass analytes The project is built upon the extremely promising results generated from our SBIR Phase I project Our novel microchips monolithically interface solid phase extraction SPE with liquid chromatography LC nanoelectrospray mass spectrometry nanoESI MS on a single device The SPE LC MS chips which we term andquot Biomonitoring Chipsandquot will serve as a low cost universal platform for enabling high sensitivity high specificity high throughput multiplexed and multi analyte biomonitoring using small volumes of biospecimens including blood samples Our biomonitoring chips will offer new opportunities for epidemiologic studies which seek to characterize individual exposomes through MS based metabolomics proteomics and adductomics analyses of diverse classes of analytes in human biospecimens PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE Cutting edge technologies enable breakthroughs in biomedical research Developments of mass spectrometry based microchip platforms for rapid and sensitive biomonitoring in humans will improve risk assessment of personal exposure to environmental toxins and thereby providing new strategies for public health