Organic Thin Film Transistor for Microfluidic Flow Cytometry

Agave BioSystems proposes to develop and demonstrate an innovative Organic Thin Film Transistor (OTFT) to detect cell characteristics without the need for cell labeling for use in microfluidic flow cytometers. This sensor would be able to detect count all cells, whether the cells are fluorescently labeled or not. This device would easily be able to detect the presence of cells within the channel as well as give information about the cell size and even the DNA content or intactness of the cell. The fact that cells will not need to be fluorescently labeled for detection is one of the major advantages of this device, since it can be used to measure live, unperturbed cells. Microfabrication of the OTFTs and microfluidic components will allow development of inexpensive, self-contained, disposable, high-throughput devices for screening of combinatorial chemical, biochemical or biological libraries. Assisting in this project will be Prof. George Malliaras of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering of Cornell University and Dr. James F. Leary, Professor and Director of the Molecular Cytometry Unit at UTMB-Galveston.