Elastic Filter Substrate for Target Cell Capture
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for capturing circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are inefficient due to low capture rates, cell destruction during separation, and handling difficulties, particularly with antibody-based technologies and physical filters with low shape maintaining force.
Innovation Solution
A filter device with an elastic filter substrate and support substrate, where lattice holes are reduced in size during cell capture and restored for easy separation, using materials like PDMS and polyurethane, and a pressing mechanism to increase contact area and prevent cell damage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a thin film filter is used to separate target cells by size, then cell separation is achieved, but shape maintaining force is low and handling is difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a flexible filter substrate made of elastic material that can be deformed to change lattice hole sizes. This flexible thin film structure maintains the benefits of size-based separation while allowing mechanical deformation for improved handling and cell release, directly resolving the contradiction between thin film separation capability and handling difficulty
Solution Approach 2:
The filter substrate transitions from a static structure to a dynamic one that can change its lattice hole size through elastic deformation. By applying external force, the lattice holes can be enlarged to facilitate cell passage or reduced to enhance capture efficiency, providing dynamic control over the filter's separation characteristics and handling properties
2Object-affected harmful factors
If lattice hole size is reduced to increase contact area with target cell, then cell destruction rate is reduced, but cell capture efficiency may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The elastic filter substrate allows dynamic adjustment of lattice hole size. During the capture phase, smaller lattice holes provide increased contact area with target cells, reducing destruction rates. During the collection phase, the lattice holes can be enlarged to facilitate easy cell release, thus resolving the contradiction between reduced cell destruction and maintained capture efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the physical parameter of lattice hole size through elastic deformation of the filter substrate. By controlling the size parameter dynamically, the system optimizes both cell capture efficiency (when holes are smaller) and cell release efficiency (when holes are larger), preventing cell destruction while maintaining productivity
3Measurement precision
If antibody-coated magnetized bead is used for tumor cell detection, then detection capability is improved, but uniform adhesion to tumor cell is difficult and magnet response is poor
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the antibody-coated magnetized bead system with a mechanical size-based filtration system using an elastic filter substrate. This substitution eliminates the reliability issues of non-uniform adhesion and poor magnet response while maintaining detection capability through physical size differentiation between tumor cells and normal blood cells
Solution Approach 2:
The filter substrate employs a porous lattice structure with controlled hole sizes that physically separate tumor cells from blood cells based on size differences. This porous material approach provides reliable and uniform cell capture without the adhesion problems associated with antibody-coated beads, achieving both detection precision and operational reliability
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
Improves capture and collection rates by facilitating easy separation of target cells without damage and enhances handling due to increased shape maintaining force.
Implementation Method 1
the filter substrate is elastically compressed in one of a direction in which the lattice holes are formed and a direction intersecting with the direction in which the lattice holes are formed, so that the size of the lattice holes is reduced
Implementation Method 2
the size of the lattice hole is restored when the target cell is collected, so that a collect rate may be improved due to easy separation of the target cell from the filter substrate
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a filter device for capturing a target cell and a target cell collecting method using the same. A filter substrate by which a target cell is captured is formed of an elastic material. When blood passes, the size of a lattice hole of the filter substrate by which the target cell is captured is reduced. When the blood completely passes, the size of the lattice hole of the filter substrate by which the target cell is captured is restored, so that a destruction rate of the target cell may be reduced and a collect rate of the target cell may be increased.