Acoustofluidic-based therapeutic apheresis system

• Published in: Nature communications Vol. 15; no. 1; pp. 6854 - 10
• Main Authors: Wu, Mengxi, Ma, Zhiteng, Xu, Xianchen, Lu, Brandon, Gu, Yuyang, Yoon, Janghoon, Xia, Jianping, Ma, Zhehan, Upreti, Neil, Anwar, Imran J., Knechtle, Stuart J., T. Chambers, Eileen, Kwun, Jean, Lee, Luke P., Huang, Tony Jun
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 10.08.2024; Nature Publishing Group; Nature Portfolio
• Subjects: 49; 49/62; 631/1647/277; 639/166/985; 639/166/988; 64; 64/60; 692/700/1720/3187; Acoustics - instrumentation; Animal models; Animals; Antibodies; Apheresis; Blood; Blood Component Removal - instrumentation; Blood Component Removal - methods; Blood volume; Desensitization; Female; Humanities and Social Sciences; Humans; Infants; Lab-On-A-Chip Devices; Mice; multidisciplinary; Plasmapheresis; Plasmapheresis - instrumentation; Plasmapheresis - methods; Science; Science (multidisciplinary)
• ISSN: 2041-1723; 2041-1723
• DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-50053-1

Therapeutic apheresis aims to selectively remove pathogenic substances, such as antibodies that trigger various symptoms and diseases. Unfortunately, current apheresis devices cannot handle small blood volumes in infants or small animals, hindering the testing of animal model advancements. This limitation restricts our ability to provide treatment options for particularly susceptible infants and children with limited therapeutic alternatives. Here, we report our solution to these challenges through an acoustofluidic-based therapeutic apheresis system designed for processing small blood volumes. Our design integrates an acoustofluidic device with a fluidic stabilizer array on a chip, separating blood components from minimal extracorporeal volumes. We carried out plasma apheresis in mouse models, each with a blood volume of just 280 μL. Additionally, we achieved successful plasmapheresis in a sensitized mouse, significantly lowering preformed donor-specific antibodies and enabling desensitization in a transplantation model. Our system offers a new solution for small-sized subjects, filling a critical gap in existing technologies and providing potential benefits for a wide range of patients. Existing apheresis devices cannot accommodate small blood volumes in infants or small animals. Here, the authors have successfully performed highly efficient plasma apheresis in mouse models, each with a blood volume of just 280 μl.