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While we aren’t inventing a cure, our team is helping accelerate cancer research to make future breakthroughs possible.
In collaboration with Kino Discovery, MicroJAMBRs' goal is to explore a more efficient pathway to isolating single cells for research through an innovative injection-molded microfluidic device.
Isolating cells for study, or single-cell analysis, is used in cancer research to examine gene expression, protein signaling, and mutations of cells in a tumor, allowing researchers to track treatment resistance and develop more targeted therapies.
In addition to oncology, single-cell analysis is useful in immunology, regenerative medicine, and pharmaceutical research markets.
The single cell analysis market is projected to exceed 1 billion dollars globally over the next decade.
With the help of Kino Discovery, our team is set to revolutionize this market with faster and more reliable preparation of single cells from complex tissues using a unique microfluidic device design.
Microfluidic devices are a small and sometimes multilayered platform with very small channels that carefully control the movement of fluid, usually at the nanoliter scale.
They have precisely engineered channel geometries to allow certain biological and chemical processes like filtration, molecular analysis, and, for our device, tissue dissociation and cell sorting.
These devices can be engineered quickly using a process called injection molding.
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Here is an example of a microfluidic device separate from our project with inlets, an outlet, and specific channel curvature to allow color gradients to form.
Injection molding is a manufacturing process in which molten material (PMMA plastic for our device) is injected into a mold cavity, or all the negative space of our part.
It is then cooled until it solidifies into the desired shape and ejected as a part. This process is essential for both consistent channel accuracy and rapid reproducibility.
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Our injection-molded, multilayered microfluidic digestion and dissociation device utilizes small yet precise channels to rapidly convert solid tissues into single cell suspensions with high viability.
Each layer feeds fluid into the next with predictable velocity and pressure profiles while channel widths decrease.
Each layer also incorporates alignment features - pins, holes, and consistent perimeter geometry - to ensure all channels align when assembled.
The device is made from acrylic, specifically polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA), a polymer chosen for its high transparency (80-93% light transmittance), chemical resistance, and dimensional stability. This material offers an optimal balance between manufacturability and performance compared to alternatives like COC and PC.
Each device is formed through injection molding with molds machined from 420 stainless steel. The mold material was selected for its hardness, durability, and polishability. It is also capable of maintaining micro-scale tolerances under high pressure and temperature.
The design was validated through structural, thermal, and material analyses to confirm the molds could withstand pressures up to 20,000 psi, maintaining dimensional accuracy within +/- 10 micrometers.
Manufacturing was supported by extensive simulation through ANSYS, analyzing flow velocity through each layer across the 3D assembly, and ensuring the design matched the performance of Kino Discovery's predicate device.
Channel dimensions on printed prototypes were measured using ImageJ, where the designed channel widths were compared to the manufactured ones.
Together, these design choices, materials, simulations, and validation tests ensured that the recreated microfluidic device closely matched the behavior and performance of the original Kino Discovery design.
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Multilayered microfluidic devices are difficult to manufacture because extremely small channels and ports must align precisely across bonded layers.
Even a minor misalignment can obstruct fluid flow and hinder the device's performance.
Compared to competitors, our device features lower cost for single-use devices.
Our platform supports rapid processing to keep research moving faster.
Higher cell viability and yield compared to manual methods.
Cell Yield
2,000 - 20,000
cells/mg tissue
Cell Viability
50 - 90%
Speed
~15 minutes
Cell Yield
7,000 - 12,000
cells/mg tissue
Cell Viability
90%
Speed
>3 hours
Cell Yield
10,000 - >500,000
cells/mg tissue
Cell Viability
70 - 95%
Speed
1 - 2 hours
Cell Yield
~5,000
cells/mg tissue
Cell Viability
~28%
Speed
1 - 3 hours
Global Single-Cell Analysis Market
4.78 Billion (2024)
Projected $15.26 Billion by 2032
Disposable microfluidic devices sold to research labs, biotech companies, hospitals, and clinical research facilities.
Rentable fluidic pump systems that control flow through the dissociation platform.
Support services that help labs integrate our device into single-cell analysis workflows.
Our strategy would involve a razor-and-razorblade business model, by providing laboratories and other facilities with a reusable peristaltic pump system while generating revenue through the sale of single-use microfluidic digestion and dissociation devices. The reusable pump acts as the "razor," while the disposable digestion and disposable PMMA microfluidic devices serve as the "razor blades." This model allows a long term and scalable revenue stream while ensuring clients have consistent access to sterile and high performing devices for single cell analysis.
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Marketing Advisor
carmanyj@uci.edu
Product Designer & Researcher
rbiju@uci.edu
Manufacturer/Prototype Developer
bgdao@uci.edu
Team Lead
mifelix@uci.edu
CAD Modeler
aadekoba@uci.edu
Francis Duhay, MD, CEO & Co-Founder, Koa Accel LLC
Jonathan Piceno, MS, Department of Biomedical Engineering
Jered Haun, PhD, Department of Biomedical Engineering UC Irvine
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