Development of a microfluidic device and imaging system for the monitoring of anti-platelet therapy
McCluskey, Peter
(2015)
Development of a microfluidic device and imaging system for the monitoring of anti-platelet therapy.
PhD thesis, Dublin City University.
This work details the development of two distinct prototype point-of-care diagnostic systems to be used to determine the ecacy of anti-platelet ther-
apies. Novel micro uidic chips were designed for each system, to enable the on-chip testing of multiple anti-platelet therapies. The prototypes work with whole blood and integrate with a new detection method used to de- termine the percentage of platelets adhered to an array of brinogen spots. The system uses customised image analysis software to objectively quantify single platelet binding events from a single blood sample, without the need to add any form of labelling to the blood. The system was validated by comparing the percentage of platelets adhered from `normal' blood samples compared to samples treated with an established platelet therapy. These treatments inhibit a specic receptor on the platelet surface, thus inter- fering with stable adhesion to brinogen, rendering platelets \less sticky". This prototype point-of-care device could allow for the automated testing of large numbers of patient samples, potentially diagnosing individuals at risk of suering a cardiovascular event or undiagnosed bleeding disorder.