Scientists have developed a "lab-on-a-chip" may allow doctors to detect cancer quickly from a droplet of blood or plasma, leading to timelier interventions and better outcomes for patients.
The ultrasensitive diagnostic device, developed by researchers at University of Kansas in the US, detects exosomes -- tiny parcels of biological information produced by tumour cells to stimulate tumour growth or metastasize.
"Historically, people thought exosomes were like 'trash bags' that cells could use to dump unwanted cellular contents," said Yong Zeng, an associate professor at KU.
"But in the past decade, scientists realised they were quite useful for sending messages to recipient cells and communicating molecular information important in many biological functions," said Zeng.
"Basically, tumours send out exosomes packaging active molecules that mirror the biological features of the parental cells. While all cells produce exosomes, tumour cells are really active compared to normal cells," he said.
The new lab-on-a-chip's key innovation is a 3D nanoengineering method that mixes and senses biological elements based on a herringbone pattern commonly found in nature, pushing exosomes into contact with the chip's sensing surface much more efficiently in a process called "mass transfer."
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