DETECTION, ISOLATION AND ANALYSIS OF RARE CELLS IN BIOLOGICAL FLUIDS

摘要

The invention provides a method for isolating or enriching a rare cell from a biological fluid of a mammal employing an antibody that binds a cell-surface antigen of the rare cell. The immobilized antibody is incubated with a sample of biological fluid that includes the rare cells and a plurality of other cells so as to form an antibody-rare cell complex. The complex can be detected or isolated and subsequently analyzed by any of a variety of physical, chemical and genetic techniques.

主权项

1. A method of isolating or enriching a rare cell from a biological fluid of a mammal, the method comprising:
(i) providing an antibody immobilized on a substrate such as large plate, Petri dish, a well, a microwell, a glass slide, a strip, a rod, a bead, or a microarrayed plate or glass slide, wherein the antibody binds a cell-surface antigen of the rare cell; (ii) contacting the immobilized antibody with a sample of biological fluid, wherein the bodily fluid comprises the rare cell and a plurality of other cells; (iii) incubating the immobilized antibody with the sample of bodily fluid under conditions suitable for binding of the antibody to the cell-surface antigen of the rare cell so as to form an antibody-rare cell complex; and (iv) washing the antibody-rare cell complex to remove the unbound cells and provide an immobilized antibody-rare cell complex.