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Continuous-flow ferrohydrodynamic sorting of particles and cells in microfluidic devices

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Abstract

A new sorting scheme based on ferrofluid hydrodynamics (ferrohydrodynamics) was used to separate mixtures of particles and live cells simultaneously. Two species of cells, including Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae, as well as fluorescent polystyrene microparticles were studied for their sorting throughput and efficiency. Ferrofluids are stable magnetic nanoparticles suspensions. Under external magnetic field gradients, magnetic buoyancy forces exerted on particles and cells lead to size-dependent deflections from their laminar flow paths and result in spatial separation. We report the design, modeling, fabrication and characterization of the sorting device. This scheme is simple, low-cost and label-free compared to other existing techniques.

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Acknowledgments

This work is in part supported by the National Science Foundation, American Society for Microbiology/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and University of Georgia Seed Award Program.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry, Nanoscale Science and Engineering Center, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 30602, USA

    Taotao Zhu

  2. Faculty of Engineering, Nanoscale Science and Engineering Center, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 30602, USA

    Rui Cheng & Leidong Mao

  3. Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, Center for Molecular BioEngineering, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 30602, USA

    Sarah A. Lee, Eashwar Rajaraman & Mark A. Eiteman

  4. Chronic Viral Diseases Branch, Division of High-Consequence Pathogens and Pathology, National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases Pathology, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, 30333, USA

    Troy D. Querec & Elizabeth R. Unger

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  1. Taotao Zhu
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Zhu, T., Cheng, R., Lee, S.A. et al. Continuous-flow ferrohydrodynamic sorting of particles and cells in microfluidic devices. Microfluid Nanofluid 13, 645–654 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10404-012-1004-9

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