NTUT develops portable lab-on-a-chip to detect heart biomarkers in 10 minutes

A development team from the National Taipei University of Technology (NTUT) presented a portable diagnostic platform capable of detecting cardiovascular biomarkers within 10 minutes, according to ua.news ua.newsua.newsua.newsOpen source ↗. The project received an Honorable Mention and a 10,000 USD prize in the Healthy Longevity Global Competition organized by the US National Academy of Medicine. The initiative concluded a seven-year international cycle, leaving the NTUT team as the only honored group from Taiwan.

Technical characteristics

The portable lab-on-a-chip system requires 10 microliters of blood to detect three clinical markers: cardiac troponin I, creatine kinase-MB, and B-type natriuretic peptide. According to the developers, the production cost of the testing device remains below 10 USD, while analytical sensitivity reaches under 1 picogram per milliliter. The engineering architecture combines magnetic nanoparticles with aptamer structures optimized for specific target binding. The manufacturing process achieves a defect rate of 1.8%, as reported by the development group.

Validation stages

The engineering group collaborates with Mackay Memorial Hospital to verify device performance on biological samples. An application for approval to conduct human trials is currently under regulatory review, meaning formal clinical investigation has not started. Once clearance is granted, the researchers intend to conduct clinical validation, fulfill regulatory requirements, and prepare industrial fabrication. The planned roadmap includes integrating the diagnostic chip with smartphones for decentralized screening in remote regions.