Three-dimensional molecular concentrator with micrometer-sized constriction for rapid protein enrichment

Abstract

A three-dimensional electrodeless dielectrophoresis (EDEP) device incorporating a micrometer-sized constriction region is proposed for the rapid preconcentration of protein. The electrokinetic phenomena within the proposed device are investigated both numerically and experimentally. It is shown that the micro-constriction structure increases the field-focusing factor by around 15 000 times and yields a 106-fold increase in the concentration of streptavidin protein within 36 s. Overall, the proposed device provides a low-cost and effective solution for performing highly-sensitive protein detection and overcomes the Poisson statistical limit inherent in traditional two-dimensional (2D) EDEP devices through its support of large (ml-scale) sample volumes.