METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR IN VIVO SURVEILLANCE OF CIRCULATING BIOLOGICAL COMPONENTS

摘要

The invention relates generally to in vivo collection of circulating molecules, tumor cells and other biological markers using a collecting probe. The probe is configured for placement within a living organism for an extended period of time to provide sufficient yield of biological marker for analysis.

主权项

1. A method for collecting markers associated with circulating cells, comprising the steps of:
providing a probe comprising a metallic guidewire comprising a binding surface and an atraumatic distal tip, wherein the binding surface comprises an outer nanostructured polymer zone and an inner non-porous zone, wherein the nanostructured polymer zone has affixed thereto at least one binding partner for binding a marker, and wherein the nanostructured polymer zone is configured to immobilize a marker to the binding surface upon binding of the marker to the binding partner, thereby increasing the surface area of the binding surface; positioning at least a portion of the probe in an anatomical structure of a living organism; maintaining the probe in a generally fixed position for greater than 1 hour; and removing the probe from the living organism.