A study of the incubation of microbead agglutination assays in a microfluidic system

This work reports on a quantitative study of the incubation of a microbead-based agglutination assay inside a microfluidic system. In this system, a droplet (1.25μL) consisting of a mixture of functionalized microbeads and analyte is flowed through a 0.51mm internal diameter silicone tube. Hydrodynamic forces alone produce a very efficient mixing of the beads within the droplet. We tested the agglutination at different speeds and show a robust response at the higher range of speeds (150 - 200μL/min), while also reaching a completion in the agglutination process. At these velocities, a length of 180cm is shown to be sufficient to confidently measure the agglutination assay, which takes between 2.5 - 3 minutes. This high throughput quantification method has the potential of accelerating the measurements of various types of biomarkers, which can greatly benefit the fields of biology and medicine.