The development of a low-cost, compact, handheld flow cytometer and microfluorescence-activated cell sorter system could have a significant impact on the

field of point-of-care diagnostics, improving health care in, for example, underserved areas of Africa and Asia, that struggle with epidemics such as HIV/AIDS. In this paper, we review recent advancements LY2835219 concentration in microfluidics, on-chip optics, novel detection architectures, and integrated sorting mechanisms. (C) 2010 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3511706]“
“Objective: To determine amniotic fluid myeloperoxidase concentration in women with preterm prelabor rupture of the membranes with microbial invasion of the amniotic cavity and histological chorioamnionitis. Methods: One hundred eighty-one women with singleton pregnancies with a gestational age between 24+0 and 36+6 weeks were included in this study. Amniocenteses were performed, and myeloperoxidase concentration in the amniotic fluid was determined using ELISA. Result: Women with microbial invasion of the amniotic cavity had higher median myeloperoxidase concentration than women without this condition (149.2 ng/mL vs. 54.6 ng/mL; p = 0.0006). Women with the presence of histological chorioamnionitis had higher

median myeloperoxidase concentration than women without histological chorioamnionitis (103.7 ng/mL vs. 50.0 ng/mL; p = 0.0001). The presence of both microbial invasion of the amniotic cavity and histological chorioamnionitis was associated with higher median myeloperoxidase concentration (456.0

ng/mL PCI-32765 research buy vs. 52.9 ng/mL; p < 0.0001). The results remained significant after adjusting for gestational age. Conclusions: Increased amniotic fluid myeloperoxidase in microbial invasion GDC 0032 mouse of the amniotic cavity and histological chorioamnionitis confirm a role of myeloperoxidase in preterm prelabor rupture of the membranes pathophysiology.”
“In this paper, we study the variation of the thickness of patterned microchannel features in photoresist (PR) by two-step photolithography. The final PR thickness is determined by the thickness and width of the predefined PR pattern in the first-step lithography and the thickness of the spin-coated PR film in the second-step lithography. Thickness variation is demonstrated to be an important consideration within the critical pattern width that the capillary pressure is still dominant for forming the PR film thickness. With this mechanism of two-step photolithography, we demonstrate its ability to form multilevel channel features and its use to fabricate a cross-flow filter with two different pore sizes as a microfluidic application. (C) 2010 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3517230]“
“Objective: To investigate teenage pregnancy outcomes controlling for lack of prenatal care (LOPC) and ethnicity.