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Mechanobiology of Disease
Wednesday Speaker Abstracts
22
Next-Generation Deformability Cytometry for Rapid Biophysical Phenotyping
Katherine D. Crawford,
Henry T. Tse
.
CytoVale Inc, South San Francisco, CA, USA.
The CytoVale deformability cytometry platform enables rapid, label-free measurements of
biophysical changes of single cells. The technology uses microfluidics to deliver cells to a cross
junction where the cells are subjected to hydrodynamic deformation forces. In our early proof-of-
concept academic studies the technology has shown utility in disease detection of malignant
pleural effusions, and characterization of stem cell differentiation
1,2
. To enable real-world
applications for biophysical biomarkers, CytoVale has developed a robust instrumentation
platform that is focused on ease of use by streamlining sample handling, operation, and data
analysis to target operations in challenging environments such as ICUs and triage stations. Our
current application efforts are focused on development of a cost-effective diagnostic for
detection of early sepsis, allowing aggressive treatment sooner, reducing hospital stay duration,
and improving patient outcomes. Early intervention has been shown to be successful in
significantly reducing morbidity and mortality from the current rate of 30-50% in addition to
realizing health economics savings, yet healthcare providers currently lack a sensitive diagnostic
tool that can identify patients early in disease progression with rapid turnaround times. CytoVale
is uniquely positioned to improve the sepsis treatment paradigm by offering the first platform to
detect the dysregulated host response. Our diagnostic platform will offer rapid, label- free
detection of activated white blood cells. The technology has the potential to deliver better patient
care while reducing systemic healthcare costs across multiple commercial applications in
immunology, oncology, and hematology.
1. Gossett, D. R. et al. Hydrodynamic stretching of single cells for large population mechanical
phenotyping. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 109, 7630–7635 (2012).
2. Tse, H. T. K. et al. Quantitative diagnosis of malignant pleural effusions by single-cell
mechanophenotyping. Sci. Transl. Med. 5, 212ra163 (2013).