Canadians have created an automated mini-laboratory for blood analysis.

Many of us donated blood for general analysis, when blood is taken from a finger. But sometimes they also take blood for an advanced analysis, when a needle is pushed into a vein and a sufficiently large amount of blood is taken. All this is rather unpleasant, but nothing seems to be done; the procedure for selecting blood does not change for several decades.

The technology proposed by Canadians (University of Calgary) allows for an expanded blood test through a special micro laboratory based on a single microchip. The whole blood test procedure is also automated, and the results of the analysis are transmitted to the server wirelessly.
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The developers of the new technology claim that a full-fledged blood test now requires a much smaller amount of fluid than before - just one picoliter will suffice. The whole procedure is also filmed on a high-speed camera.

The new method involves the use of structures called microemulsions. In this case, a drop of liquid is applied to the layer of the other, but both substances do not mix (water and vegetable oil can be given as an example). This mixing process removes the need for many steps to separate the blood, separate the drops and so on. All this, as already mentioned, is carried out automatically, including the analysis of finished samples. As a result, only one person is needed to operate such a “laboratory”.

The creators of technology believe that based on this method, you can create devices for home use, or for work in the field. Now many of us use portable electronic devices to measure pressure, in a few years, perhaps devices for home blood testing will also appear in pharmacies.

Well, and if you really show imagination, then you can think about the connection of such devices with services like Google Health. Now the patient will not need to spend time and go to the hospital for a blood test, losing time, all this can be done in a couple of minutes.

Let's hope that the technology will really develop, and in a few years the devices mentioned above will be on sale.

Via ucalgary