Removal of Human Leukemic Cells from Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells by Cell Recognition Chromatography with Size Matched Particle Imprints

We report a cell recognition chromatography approach for blood cancer cell separation from healthy peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) based on size-matched functionalized particle imprints. Negative imprints were prepared from layers of 15 μm polymeric microbeads closely matching the size of cultured human leukemic cells (HL60). We replicated these imprints on a large scale with UV curable polyurethane resin using nanoimprinting lithography. The imprints were functionalized with branched polyethylene imine (bPEI) and passivated by Poloxamer 407 to promote a weak attraction toward cells. When a matching cell fits into an imprint cavity, its contact area with the imprint is maximized, which amplifies the attraction and the binding selectivity. We tested these imprints specificity for depleting myeloblasts from a mixture with healthy human PBMCs in a cell recognition chromatography setup hosting the imprint. The mixture of fixed HL60/PBMCs ratio was circulated over the imprint and at each step the se...