Cell Isolation Filter with Perforating Needle for Vacuum Suction
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for isolating and culturing living cells from blood samples, particularly tumor or trophoblast cells, are inefficient and costly, and do not allow for the collection of living cells compatible with routine laboratory examinations, leading to degraded genetic material and difficulties in molecular biology analyses.
Innovation Solution
A device comprising a compartment with a movable means and a filter integral to the opening, equipped with a needle for suctioning liquid through a filter, allowing for the isolation and culture of living cells while minimizing cell loss and contamination risks, and enabling the extraction of genetic material.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a needle is used to perforate the vacuum tube stopper for cell collection, then cell collection efficiency is improved, but the risk of accidental needle stick increases
Solution Approach 1:
The device is divided into separate functional modules: a needle assembly for perforation, a vacuum tube holder for positioning, and a collection chamber for cell isolation. This segmentation allows the needle to be used efficiently while isolating it from direct user contact during the critical perforation phase.
Solution Approach 2:
The vacuum tube stopper acts as an intermediary element between the needle and the user's hand. The needle perforates the stopper rather than directly contacting the user, and the stopper's depression design ensures proper positioning while preventing accidental sticks during the cell collection process.
2Stability of the object's composition
If formaldehyde-based fixation buffer is applied to fix cells, then cell stability is improved, but genetic material quality deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The device enables preliminary collection and isolation of cells on the filter membrane before any fixation or genetic material extraction is performed. This preliminary action allows for living cell culture to be established first, and genetic material can then be extracted from cultured cells under optimized conditions that preserve DNA and RNA integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system provides dynamic options for cell processing: cells can be fixed immediately for stable storage, or they can be cultured as living cells and then processed for genetic material extraction. The movable means and filter design accommodate both fixed and living cell states, allowing the user to choose the appropriate pathway based on the desired outcome.
3Quantity of substance
If cells are isolated using conventional filtration methods, then cell separation is achieved, but cell loss increases
Solution Approach 1:
The filter membrane creates a copy or replica of the cell distribution pattern from the liquid sample. Cells are retained on the filter surface in their original spatial arrangement, allowing for efficient separation without the need for additional handling steps that would cause cell loss. The filter acts as a template that preserves cell positions while separating them from the liquid medium.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables the efficient collection and culture of living cells and genetic material in good condition, reducing costs and improving the quality of cellular and molecular biology examinations, while ensuring safety and standardization of the sampling process.
Implementation Method 1
a needle adapted to perforate a stopper of vacuum tube having a depression with respect to the ambient pressure to suck the liquid through said filter
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2A~2D
Figure 3A~3F
AI summary
The invention relates to a method for isolating living cells on a filter or extracting the genetic material thereof from same, characterised in that said method comprises: a step (202, 402) of at least provisionally securing a filter (108, 308) to a bottom opening of a compartment (102, 302) which also has an air intake; a step (204, 404) of injecting a liquid comprising said cells into said compartment; a step of at least provisionally securing (205, 405) a needle (180) to said opening of the compartment in a sealed fashion, the filter being located between the needle and the inner space of the compartment; a step of perforating (206, 406) with said needle a cap (186) of a vacuum tube (185) having negative pressure relative to the ambient pressure; and a step of sucking (210, 410) the liquid through said filter, by means of the negative pressure in the vacuum tube, said filter retaining said cells.