Congratulations to Raquel and Rosa!

They successully defended their Master thesis in September.

Raquel Catalán: Development of an Ionogel-based Handheld Sensor Device for Water Monitoring

(MASTER: ENVIRONMENTAL CONTAMINATION AND TOXICOLOGY)

Abstract: Over the last years, environmental pollution awareness has grown in society. The presence of nitrite in water is an indicative of urban and industrial contamination; nitrite in high concentrations can react with amines and amides generating toxic and cancinogenic nitrosamides. Additionally, the increase of nitrate in water helps in the uncontrolled proliferation of algae, leading to the death of the any organisms present in water. The aim of this work is to improve the characteristics of a nitrite/nitrate microfluidic sensor device, which was recently developed in our lab, based on a fast colorimetric reaction with the Griess reactive. The project aims to improve the analytical properties of the devices, but at the same time make a useful and user-friendly microfluidic device for water analysis.

Rosa Garoz: Módulo microfluídico de extracción de plasma sanguíneo para dispositivos de análisis rápido

(MASTER: FORENSIC ANALYSIS)

Abstract:Rapid analysis of blood samples at the point-of-care is of great interest to avoid the use of large centralised analytical infrastructures, to reduce the time to answer and to reduce the cost of the analysis. Blood is a complex matrix containing a large number of analytes dissolved in plasma and also a large number of cells. Most of the analytical protocols to detect blood analytes involve the removal of the red blood cells because they may interfere with the analytical signal. Microfluidic systems offer the potential of being a small self-conatined device where the analytical assay may be performed in an automated manner. This work is focused on the development of a microfluidic module for blood sample preparation, in particular for plasma separation. Based on a previously designed single-trench system, we applied the integration of polymer micropumps with multilayer laminated microfluidic cartridges for high volume of plasma separation from whole blood. We evaluated the use of a multitrench system with the objectives of increasing the efficacy of the device, reducing the assay time and increasing the percentage of extracted plasma. In the first place, an optimization of the multi-trench system yield an increase in plasma filtration efficiency. Additionally, a reduction of blood sample volume led to a satisfactory plasma extraction without the need of diluting the samples. Furthermore we evaluated the effect of the flow rate in the cell sedimentation time for an efficient extraction. Finally, different methods were tested to avoid bubble formation capable of raise red blood cells from the bottom of trench, of which the use of miscible and immiscible liquids to cover top the trenches obtained the most satisfactory results fluids.