Low-Voltage Origami-Paper-Based Electrophoretic Device for Rapid Protein Separation

Authors:
Publisher website
Google Scholar
Abstract
We present an origami paper-based electrophoretic device (oPAD-Ep) that achieves rapid (∼5 min) separation of fluorescent molecules and proteins. Due to the innovative design, the required driving voltage is just ∼10 V, which is more than 10 times lower than that used for conventional electrophoresis. The oPAD-Ep uses multiple, thin (180 μm/layer) folded paper layers as the supporting medium for electrophoresis. This approach significantly shortens the distance between the anode and cathode, and this, in turn, accounts for the high electric field (>1 kV/m) that can be achieved even with a low applied voltage. The multilayer design of the oPAD-Ep enables convenient sample introduction by use of a slip layer as well as easy product analysis and reclamation after electrophoresis by unfolding the origami paper and cutting out desired layers. We demonstrate the use of oPAD-Ep for simple separation of proteins in bovine serum, which illustrates its potential applications for point-of-care diagnostic testing.
Funding Information
  • Division of Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental and Transport Systems (1402242)
  • Welch Foundation (F-0032)

This publication has 37 references indexed in Scilit: