Professor Huw Summers
Professor Huw Summers, Chair of Nanotechnology for Health and Head of the Multidisciplinary Nanotechnology Centre (MNC) at Swansea University, is leading research into a device which could allow non-technical users to analyse blood samples themselves, potentially revolutionising the turnaround time between sample acquisition and assessment delivery.
The project, run jointly with a physics group at Cardiff University led by Professor Peter Smowton is being funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and will produce a device known as an “Integrated III-V Haemocytometer”, a capillary driven, microscale disposable chip instrument for the analysis of blood samples for non-technical users.
Professor Summers, who is also a Senior Affiliate Member of the Methodist Hospital Research Institute in Houston, Texas, said: “The assessment of human health from analysis of blood samples is one of the most widespread medical diagnostic procedures; with thousands of patients providing samples every day in hundreds of clinics and surgeries across the UK.
“However, it remains a slow process because samples have to be sent to a limited number of specialist central services in health trusts, with a turnaround of days between sample acquisition and assessment delivery. It is expensive, both in terms of direct cost of the analysis and costs due to deterioration of patient health as a result of the time delay in accessing results.”
“The Integrated III-V Haemocytometer is a microscale disposable chip instrument for non-technical users that provides established and understood diagnostic parameters.
“The basic device will consist of lasers and detectors integrated around a fluid channel to facilitate counting, scattering and wavelength dependent absorption measurements. This will differentiate red blood cells from white blood cells, discriminate between the main white blood cell types – monocyte, lymphocyte, neutrophil and granulocyte – and provide cell counts of these sub groups.
“We have blood analysis experts working on the project, and co-workers focused on cell cycle and anti-cancer research will interact and maximise the benefits of the device that goes well beyond current blood test capability.”
“The microscale system is advantageous in a variety of ways, for example, microscaling reduces the volume of blood required, changing the way blood-based diagnostics are used. In this instance, immediate and quasi-continuous monitoring of the haematological state becomes feasible and can be used in acute situations such as surgery or childbirth. This also offers, with further development, a realistic route to continuous monitoring during everyday life.
There are also significant commercial benefits, with a UK manufacturing supply chain already identified. Professor Summers said: “Semiconductor micro fabrication will allow for mass manufacture of low cost systems, shifting the cost of blood testing from technician to test kit and introducing a distributed cost model (pay per kit) rather than a single, major capital investment.”
