Integration and Automation of Molecular Diagnostics, and Miniaturization and Versatility of Cell Screening
Associate Professor LIU Peng’s research focuses on developing various novel microfluidic platforms. By integrating innovative biochemical analysis technologies, he aims to realize the wide application of microfluidic technology in multiple fields such as molecular diagnostics and drug screening. His main research work includes two aspects:
Developing miniaturized total analysis systems for clinical diagnosis and forensic DNA testing based on microfluidic technology, enabling the automation and point-of-care applications of molecular diagnostic technologies.
Creating high-throughput microfluidic platforms for cell manipulation, culture, and analysis, which are applied to the research of tumor organoids and stem cells, as well as drug screening and single-cell sequencing.
Associate Professor LIU Peng has developed the world’s first high-performance miniaturized total analysis system for forensic DNA typing, along with supporting testing equipment and reagents. His research has been reported by MIT Technology Review and other media outlets. Subsequently, through nearly 8 years of collaborative research with the Institute of Forensic Science, Ministry of Public Security, and CapitalBio Corporation, he successfully developed China’s independently designed fully integrated forensic DNA analyzer, which has been put into practical application and product sales in the public security system.
Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Associate Professor LIU Peng has collaborated with BAI Jingwei and LI Yinqing from the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tsinghua University, to successfully develop a home-use integrated self-service COVID-19 nucleic acid detection cartridge. This achievement enables rapid and accurate COVID-19 testing in various environments such as homes, and has now achieved mass production.
In the field of precision tumor therapy and drug research and development, Associate Professor LIU Peng has realized the efficient culture and analysis of tumor organoids using his original superhydrophobic microwell array chip platform. He has applied this technology to the drug evaluation of lung cancer patients, enabling rapid provision of medication guidance within one week, which holds excellent clinical application prospects. Meanwhile, he has also utilized tumor organoids for drug development and evaluation, integrating multiple analytical technologies such as high-throughput sequencing and super-resolution imaging to achieve the efficient utilization of organoids.
1.Hu, Y., Sui, X., Song, F., Li, Y., Li, K., Chen, Z., Yang, F., Chen, X., Zhang, Y., Wang, X., Liu, Q., Li, C., Zou, B., Chen, X.,# Wang, J.# and Liu, P.# Lung cancer organoids analyzed on microwell arrays predict drug responses of patients within a week. Nature Communications 12, 2581 (2021)
2.Li, S., Liu, Q., Geng, Z., Li, K., Zhao, T. and Liu, P.# Anionic polysaccharide-modified filter papers for rapid isolation of extracellular vesicles from diverse samples in a simple bind-wash-elute manner. Analytical Chemistry 93, 7405–7412 (2021)
3.Xing, W., Liu, Y., Wang, H., Li, S., Lin, Y., Chen, L., Zhao, Y., Chao, S., Huang, X., Ge, S., Deng, T., Zhao, T., Li, B., Wang, H., Wang, L., Song, Y., Jin, R., He, J., Zhao, X., Liu, P.,# Li, W.# and Cheng, J.# A high-throughput, multi-index isothermal amplification platform for rapid detection of 19 types of common respiratory viruses including SARS-CoV-2. Engineering 6, 1130−1140 (2020)
4.Lin, B., Guo, Z., Geng, Z., Jakaratanopas, S., Han, B. and Liu, P.# A scalable microfluidic chamber array for sample- loss-free and bubble-proof sample compartmentalization by simple pipetting. Lab on a Chip 20, 2981–2989 (2020)
5.Geng, Z., Li, S., Zhu, L., Cheng, Z., Jin, M., Liu, B., Guo, Y. and Liu, P.# “Sample-to-answer” detection of rare ctDNA mutation from 2 mL plasma with a fully integrated DNA extraction and digital droplet PCR microdevice for liquid biopsy. Analytical Chemistry 92, 7240−7248 (2020)
