Faster, cleaner blood testing for tumor-derived particles
Streamlining sample preparation with high throughput SpinEx (Separation processing integration for Extracellular vesicles)
This project is building an automated method to prepare blood samples so tests can better read tiny tumor-related particles for people with cancer.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Massachusetts General Hospital NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Boston, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11252539 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Researchers are improving a device called SpinEx to separate tiny tumor-derived particles (extracellular vesicles) from blood using a new dual-mode chromatography approach combined with automated processing. The team aims to remove contaminating particles like lipoproteins that currently hide or confuse EV signals and to speed up sample preparation so many samples can be run quickly. Lab work will optimize the separation chemistry and throughput and test how well SpinEx produces cleaner samples for downstream molecular tests. The work will include experiments with blood plasma and comparisons to current lab methods to show whether the new approach gives more reliable results.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: People with cancer who give blood samples for tumor monitoring or who are interested in participating in liquid-biopsy research would be the ideal candidates.
Not a fit: Patients whose care does not involve blood-based tumor markers or liquid biopsies are unlikely to receive direct benefit from this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could make blood-based tumor tests faster and more reliable by providing cleaner samples for molecular analysis.
How similar studies have performed: Related microfluidic and separation technologies have shown promise for EV isolation, but combining dual-mode chromatography with high-throughput integration is a relatively new and less-tested approach.
Where this research is happening
Boston, United States
- Massachusetts General Hospital — Boston, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Lee, Hakho — Massachusetts General Hospital
- Study coordinator: Lee, Hakho
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.