UNIST develops tech that separates plasma using magnet

Researchers at Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology have developed a non-powered technology that separates plasma from the blood by using a magnet.

The top photo shows the principle of plasma separation using magnets, and the bottom picture presents actual plasma separation (UNIST)

The research team, led by Professor Kang Joo-hun of the Biomedical Engineering Department, expects that the new technology will improve the accuracy of on-site diagnostic blood tests, which have recently increased in demand.

The researchers placed a chip planted with a magnet in a person’s blood. Afterward, the magnet pushes away the blood cells separating the plasma and blood cells. Using this method, the researchers quickly obtained pure plasma without any blood cell content. They succeeded in developing a highly accurate field diagnostic chip that allows plasma separation and blood tests simultaneously on a single chip.

Blood has two categories -- blood cells (red and white) and plasma, a pale yellow liquid.

“However, biomarkers, such as bacterial genes and proteins, that hospitals want to find through blood tests are only inside the plasma,” the team said. “To conduct an accurate test, it is necessary to separate only the plasma from the blood cleanly.”

The plasma separation technology can quickly obtain pure plasma without hemolysis or blood cell contamination in which red blood cells burst. When the team conducted an experiment to isolate the plasma from bacterially infected blood, it detected a bacterial gene twice as high as that of plasma separated by a general centrifugation technique.

The technology can also separate platelet-rich plasma (PRP), which has recently received attention as a new biomarker for the diagnosis of cancer or diabetes, according to UNIST.

The research team also developed an ultra-compact, low-cost, high-precision diagnostic chip that can test blood directly without plasma separation. The diagnostic chip detected prostate-specific antigen (PSA) protein, a biomarker for prostate cancer diagnosis.

“While many studies have tried to develop a reliable non-electric plasma separation technology, no methods satisfied all requirements,” Professor Kang said. “We expect that if our new plasma separation technology is successfully applied to the on-site blood analysis, it will create a great ripple effect.”

The results of the research were published in the May edition of the journal, Small.