A microfluidic device that separates single cells from whole tissue in a rapid and gentle manner using hydrodynamic fluid flow. The separated single cell suspensions can then be used in tissue engineering applications, regenerative medicine and the study of cancer.

A low-cost method of manufacturing a, rough high surface area electrodes with a dissolvable polymer coating to improve surface wettability and electrochemical sensing.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in the U.S. As with any cancer, early detection and treatment is critical in minimizing the severity of the tumor and risk of death. Researchers at UCI School of Medicine have developed a novel contrast-enhanced mammography technique capable of distinguishing between benign and malignant lesions in breast tissue.

Researchers at UC Irvine developed an independent non-invasive method to distinguish between healthy and unhealthy embryos.

The invention is a miniaturized device that assays the respiration of a single mitochondrion. Through a novel approach for measuring oxygen consumption rate, the device provides information on cell and tissue mitochondrial functional. This data is relevant for understanding human conditions associated with mitochondrial dysfunction, such as Alzheimer’s Disease and cancer.

Researchers at UCI have developed a multi-clade HIV-1 proteomic chip that helps with diagnosis of clade specific infection of HIV-1. Proteomic chip can determine the immune status and prognosis of HIV infected individuals.

Researchers at UC Irvine have developed a cell-free (CF) protein synthesis system to solubilize and synthesize highly hydrophobic membrane proteins that would typically aggregate using current CF synthesis systems. With such high amounts of synthesized proteins, researchers intend to build protein microarrays for diagnostic purposes.

The invention consists of a multi-channel, droplet-generating microfluidic device with a strategically placed feature. The feature vibrates in order to counteract particle-trapping micro-vortices formed in the device. Counteracting these vortices allows for single particle encapsulation in the droplets formed by the device and makes this technology a good candidate for use in single cell diagnostics and drug delivery systems.

Many applications, ranging from in vivo cell culture growth to drug delivery, rely on microcapsules to encapsulate and protect cells or molecules until their desired release. These microcapsules are typically generated in immiscible fluid, which must be depleted before they can be effectively used. Researchers at UCI have recently developed a paper-based microcapsule extraction technique that is quicker, cheaper, and less damaging than conventional methods.

The inventors at UCI have developed a method and system to make enhanced electrical impedance spectroscopy measurements in a continuously flowing train of microfluidic droplets. The technique increases the sensitivity of the electrical impedance spectroscopy measurements, lowering detection limits and increasing the frequency of continuous measurements.

The invention is an easy to use wristband that continuously monitor various vitals like the heart rate, temperature and blood pressure. It eliminates the need for uncomfortable and bulky cuffs that are normally used for such measurements. The wristband communicates wirelessly to the user’s or doctor’s smart phone for easy access, monitoring and care.

Biosensors have a variety of applications from glucose monitoring to drug discovery. The ability to detect low concentration of analytes in biological samples is important for creating effective biosensors. Researchers at UCI have developed a novel lithographic method for capturing, concentrating, and identifying biological agents.

Wearable electronics are becoming a popular way of integrating personal healthcare with continuous, remote health monitoring, yet current devices are bulky and exhibit poor electronic performance. Wrinkled metal thin films can be utilized for their thin, flexible profiles, which conform well to the skin. Researchers at UCI have developed a novel method using specialized materials that results in wrinkled metal thin films that have enhanced mechanical and electrical performance.

Certain diseases, such as Multiple Sclerosis and other autoimmune disorders, are associated with deficiencies in specific metabolites that influence protein glycosylation. This invention is a specialized method to detect levels of these metabolites, which can then be used to diagnose disorders and guide personalized treatments.

The diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), and thus the development of therapies, is very challenging due to the lack of objective criteria and biomarkers. It is, however, a disease with a strong genetic component, and recent data has implicated new genes in the disease. Researchers at UC Irvine have developed a method to more reliably diagnose ASD with a laboratory test.

The detection of levels of messenger RNA (mRNA), the molecule used by DNA to convey information about protein production, is a very important method in molecular biology. Current detection strategies, such as Northern Blotting and RT-PCR, require destruction of the cell to extract such information. Researchers at the University of California, Irvine have developed a method to non-destructively assess mRNA levels in a single living cell.

The invention is a diagnostic technology, as well as a research and development tool. It is a simple, easy to operate, and effective platform for the analysis of pharmaceuticals and biological species. Specifically, this platform generates hydroxyl radicals for oxidative footprinting – a technique commonly employed in protein mapping and analysis. The platform itself is inexpenisve to fabricate, scalable, and requires nothing more than an ordinary pipet to use. In addition, it is highly amenable to scale-up, multiplexing, and automation, and so it holds promise as a high-throughput method for mapping protein structure in support of product development, validation, and regulatory approval in the protein-based therapeutics industry.

This invention is a software for calculating the maximum force a bone can support. The offered method provides an accurate assessment of how changes in a bone due to special circumstances, such as osteoporosis or a long duration space flight, might increase patient’s risk of fracture.

The invention is a method for deriving an anatomical coordinate system for a body part (especially bone) to aid in its characterization. The method relies on 3-D digital images of an anatomical object, such as CT- or MR-scans, to objectively, precisely, and reliably identify its geometry in a computationally efficient manner. The invention is a great improvement over the current practice of subjective, user-dependent manual data entry and visualization of bones and organs. The applications for well-defined anatomical coordinate systems include robotic surgeries, models for bone density studies, and construction of statistical anatomical data sets.

Researchers at UC Irvine have developed a novel immunofluorescent imaging strategy to identify cell subsets of interest, in particular cancer stem cells, endothelial progenitor cells, and other primary adherent cells from tumor biopsies.

<p>Researchers have developed a novel system and method to rapidly separate particles from liquid. This technology demonstrates lab-on-a-chip potential for particle separation and/or purification. This technology is capable of processing a wide variety of molecules, ranging from cells to smaller biomolecules such as proteins and nucleic acid. Applications of this technology include (but are not limited) use of it for particle separation and quantification for assays, cell preparation, and cell lysing and component separation.</p>

Researchers at UC Irvine have developed a non-invasive wireless method to measure, quantify and analyze infant movement to identify preterm infants at risk for neurological disorders such as cerebral palsy, mental retardation, autism, or intraventricular hemorrhage.

Measurement of three-dimensional (3D) flow field inside cardiac chambers has proven to be a challenging task. Researchers at UC Irvine have developed a multi-planar velocity reconstruction approach that is able to characterize 3D incompressible flows based on the reconstruction of 2D velocity fields.

The ability for on-chip particle/cell manipulation is important for microfluidic applications. Researchers at UC Irvine have developed a technology that exploits the phenomenon of acoustic microstreaming to manipulate fluid flow and suspended cells/particles in a microfluidic environment.

Researchers at UC Irvine have developed a technology to detect the presence of nucleic acid amplification in a droplet. This technology yields real time detection of DNA or RNA amplication in a high throughput integrated microfluidic platform.