The capability to create thousands of nanoliter-sized compartments is essential to isolating single molecules. (See associated video below) Thank you to the 6-year-old volunteer and thank you to Liang Li at SlipChip Corp. for providing the chip used in this video. Reference: Daan Witters, Bing Sun, Stefano Begolo, Jesus Rodriguez-Manzano, Whitney Robles, and Rustem F. Ismagilov, "Digital Biology and Chemistry," Lab on a Chip 2014, DOI: 10.1039/C4LC00248B.

In the video below, single molecules were amplified on SlipChip and a cell phone was used to image the chip in a shoebox. The image was then sent to a remote server, where the pattern of "positive" and "negative" wells on the chip was automatically analyzed, Poisson statistics was applied, and the number of molecules present in the sample was calculated. Quantitative results were automatically sent via email. A minimally trained user can use this approach. Reference: David A. Selck, Mikhail A. Karymov, Bing Sun, and Rustem F. Ismagilov, "Increased Robustness of Single-Molecule Counting with Microfluidics, Digital Isothermal Amplification, and a Mobile Phone versus Real-Time Kinetic Measurements," Analytical Chemistry 2013, DOI: 10.1021/ac4030413.

This SlipChip is used for dry preservation of biological specimens at room temperature. Filling the sample preservation device An untrained user can fill the dry sample preservation device. Once the user slips the device, the device can be shipped to a laboratory for analysis. Reference: Stefano Begolo, Feng Shen, and Rustem F. Ismagilov, "A Microfluidic Device for Dry Sample Preservation in Remote Settings," Lab Chip 2013 13: 4331-4342

This SlipChip is used for dry preservation of biological specimens at room temperature. Dynamics of drying The video below shows the process of sample drying within the device. Movie plays 60x faster than real-time. Reference: Stefano Begolo, Feng Shen, and Rustem F. Ismagilov, "A Microfluidic Device for Dry Sample Preservation in Remote Settings," Lab Chip 2013 13: 4331-4342

This SlipChip is used for dry preservation of biological specimens at room temperature. Sample re-collection The video below shows the steps for rehydrating and recovering dried samples. Rehydration and re-collection are shown only for one well, demonstrating the capability for partial recovery. Rehydration section plays 8x faster than real-time. Reference: Stefano Begolo, Feng Shen, and Rustem F. Ismagilov, "A Microfluidic Device for Dry Sample Preservation in Remote Settings," Lab Chip 2013 13: 4331-4342