Abstract

Lab-on-a-chip devices for point of care diagnostics have been present in clinics for several years now. Alongside their continual development, research is underway to bring the organs and tissue on-a-chip to the patient, amongst other medical applications of microfluidics.

This book provides the reader with a comprehensive review of the latest developments in the application of microfluidics to medicine and is divided into three main sections. The first part of the book discusses the state-of-the-art in organs and tissue on a chip; the second provides a thorough background to microfluidics for medicine, and the third (and largest) section provides numerous examples of point-of-care diagnostics.

Written with students and practitioners in mind, and with contributions from the leaders in the field across the globe, this book provides a complete digest of the state-of-the-art in microfluidics medical devices and will provide a handy resource for any laboratory or clinic involved in the development or application of such devices.

Albert van den Berg received his MSc in applied physics in 1983, and his PhD in 1988 both at the University of Twente, the Netherlands. From 1988-1993 he worked in Neuchatel, Switzerland, at the CSEM and the University (IMT) on miniaturized chemical sensors. From 1993 until 1999 he was research director Micro Total Analysis Systems (μTAS) at MESA, University of Twente. In 1998 he was appointed as part-time professor “Biochemical Analysis Systems”, and later in 2000 as full professor on Miniaturized Systems for (Bio)Chemical Analysis in the faculty of Electrical Engineering. He received several honors and awards such as Simon Stevin (2002), ERC Advanced (2008) and ERC Proof of Concept (2011, 2013) grants, Spinoza prize (2009), Honorary University Professorship (Twente, 2010), and Distinguished Professor at SCNU (Guangzhou, 2012). He has co-authored over 250 papers (H=44) and over 10 patents, and has been and is involved in 6 spin-off companies. He is member of the Dutch National Health Council and became a board member of the Royal Dutch Academy of Sciences (KNAW) in 2011. He has been co-initiator and chairman of the international Micro Total Analysis Conference. His current research interests focus on microanalysis systems and nanosensors, nanofluidics and single cells, tissues and organs on chips, especially with applications in personalized health care, drug development and development of sustainable (nano)technologies.