SIFT: Label-Free Sorting by Droplet Microfluidics

Our lab has developed a novel platform for droplet sorting that can be used to sort enzymes by activity, and cells by metabolism. It is a passive technique that utilizes no excitation laser, detector, active sorter and related electronics, or fluorescent labels. It presents a robust way to sort enzyme libraries for screening and sort cancer cells by a defining characteristic, their aberrant metabolism. The technique also enables the isolation of activated T-cells prior to the display of cellular surface markers. The isolation of activated T-cells in minutes rather than hours can have broad usage as a biotechnology tool and for the study and selection for immunology and immunotherapy.

Learning Objectives:

1. Explain the droplet sorting mechanism of the SIFT technology.

2. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the SIFT technology.

3. Identify the type of samples that can be sorted with the SIFT technology.