Acoustofluidic Isolation of Extracellular Vesicles for Early Cancer Theranostics (AcouVesi)

Cancer remains one of the leading causes of death, largely due to late diagnosis. Liquid biopsy – the analysis of biomarkers in body fluids – offers great potential for earlier detection and improved treatment decisions. Tiny vesicles released by cells, which carry molecular information about their tissue of origin, are among the most promising biomarker candidates for disease detection and monitoring.

Dr. Michael Gerlt will advance acoustofluidic chromatography for use in clinical and translational settings. The method will be validated with biobank and patient-derived samples. Key goals are reproducibility, robustness, cost-efficiency, and scalability through parallel sample processing, together with demonstrating integration into diagnostic workflows. 

In collaboration with the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), the project will create a prototype pipeline linking sample preparation, acoustofluidic enrichment, and downstream molecular analysis, establishing a foundation for future applications in cancer diagnostics.