Microbubbles for Diagnostics

Sample preparation is critical to the success of downstream applications, but achieving high-quality results requires that delicate analytes of interest be pure and unaltered by harsh retrieval techniques, and analytes of low abundance can be collected from within larger-volume, complex sample types.

Current technologies have failed to meet the needs of evolving scientific research and industries – and that shortcoming is having a negative impact on everything from healthcare costs to research results. 

Akadeum’s revolutionary approach to sample preparation eliminates barriers that are limiting the effectiveness and scalability of workflows today. Our microbubble technology can quickly and easily interrogate a complex sample of any volume for the analytes of interest while maintaining the health, physiology, and integrity of the enriched sample.

Binding Target Cells, Proteins, DNA, and RNA to Microbubbles: Proprietary Manufacturing for Broad Applications

Akadeum’s proprietary technology allows us to functionalize the surface chemistry of the microbubbles for targeted binding to specified analytes. This surface chemistry can range from silica to amine to streptavidin to antibodies and more. Using multiple surface layers allows us to create effective, targeted binding that achieves high yields, minimizes non-specific binding, and creates high purity results for applications like cell separation, pathogen capture, and nucleic acid extraction.

Our proprietary manufacturing system enables high-performance surface functionalization, with shelf life of 1 year already established for multiple targets. All of our manufacturing occurs on-site at Akadeum, where multiple surface layers are used to achieve high yield, low non-specific binding, and high purity for applications like cell separation, pathogen capture, and nucleic acid extraction. Akadeum’s microbubble technology works alone or in combination with other separation methods and devices, and is compatible with nearly any downstream process.

The microbubble technology can be deployed in numerous ways for critical workflow elements like:

• Negative Selection: Enabling High Purity, Large Scale Enrichment
• Positive Selection: Extracting Nucleic Acids for qPCR Analysis
• Depletion: Removing Unwanted Elements Like Dead Cells from Samples

Akadeum’s Buoyancy-Activated Cell Sorting (BACS™) microbubble technology represents a breakthrough in separation technology.

Microbubbles are small, solid particles that float. They are coated with chemistries that enable them to target specific cells, proteins, nucleic acids, and other analytes of interest. Their elegant mechanism of action allows researchers to leverage the power of gravity for quick and gentle separation that occurs directly in the sample container.

With gravity as the driving force, microbubbles provide consistent results while eliminating the need for extraneous equipment and consumables like magnets and columns, while enabling reliable separations regardless of sample volume or container shape or size.

Akadeum has taken technology that traditionally requires various equipment and consumables to perform, and put it into a single container for self-separation that is exceptionally gentle on delicate cells and other analytes of interest. Critically, this technology works alone or in combination with other cell separation methods or devices, enabling entirely new workflows and assays that are compatible with existing processes.