Challenges and Opportunities for Translating Medical Microdevices: Insights from The Programmable Bio-Nano-Chip

Abstract

This perspective highlights the major challenges for the bioanalytical community, in particular the area of lab-on-a-chip sensors, as they relate to point-of-care diagnostics. There is a strong need for general-purpose and universal biosensing platforms that can perform multiplexed and multiclass assays on real-world clinical samples. However, the adoption of novel lab-on-a-chip/microfluidic devices has been slow as several key challenges remain for the translation of these new devices to clinical practice. A pipeline of promising medical microdevice technologies will be made possible by addressing the challenges of integration, failure to compete with cost and performance of existing technologies, requisite for new content, and regulatory approval and clinical adoption.

Keywords::

• lab-on-a-chip
• mHealth
• microfluidic devices
• point-of-care diagnostics
• programmable bio-nano-chip (p-BNC)

Disclaimer

The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent or reflect views of the NIH or the Federal Government.

Financial & competing interest disclosure

Principal Investigator, JT McDevitt, has an equity interest in SensoDX, LLC, and also serves on the Scientific Advisory Board. Funding was provided by NIH through the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIH Grant No. 3 U01 DE017793-02S1 and 5 U01 DE017793-2). The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.