Microfluidic Cartridge for Organ-Injury Prediction

To address the DHP?s need for a multiplexed bioassay to predict the early onset of organ injury, Physical Optics Corporation (POC) proposes to develop a new Microfluidic Cartridge for Organ-Injury Prediction (MCOP). The MCOP combines both sample processing technology and detection on a single microfluidic cartridge to provide lab-on-a-chip capabilities and allow for the rapid and quantitative detection of multiple protein, nucleic acid, and lipid biomarkers from a variety of sample matrices at the point-of-care. MCOP?s simple, low-cost and reliable optical detection subsystem permits portability, making it particularly suitable for diagnostic purposes in Role 3 field hospitals. In Phase I, POC will demonstrate to the DHP the feasibility of this immunoassay format to multiplex, quantify and detect several molecular biomarkers of Acute Liver Injury (ALI) and Acute Kidney Injury (AKI) on a microfluidic cartridge. Additionally, a literature search will help us review and identify other suitable candidate biomarkers for other organ injuries. In Phase II, POC plans to optimize the performance parameters of the prototype and perform extensive testing for the potential to commercialize in Phase III.