MIT researchers have pushed the envelope on lab-on-a-chip technology that could significantly increase the vast array of chemical interactions that drug developers rely on to find new drug candidates. They have found that using intersecting channels to direct tiny bubbles on a microfluidic chip can replace the pumps and valves that have been in use. That switch would reduce the money spent in the discovery process and speed research. Experts say that dispensing with the pumps and valves makes the lab-on-a-chip far more compact. The new technology theoretically allows a researcher to test all the possible combinations of 20 different chemicals.
- read the report from MIT's Technology Review