KR20220135994A - Apparatus and method to separate natural killer cell - Google Patents

Abstract

An apparatus for separating natural killer cells according to an embodiment of the present invention may comprise a rotatable disk body, and a plurality of chambers provided to be interconnected in the disk body and separating the natural killer cells from blood by using centrifugal force and density gradient materials generated when the disc body rotates.

Description

Apparatus for separating natural killer cells and method for separating natural killer cells thereof

The present invention relates to an apparatus for separating natural killer cells and a method for separating natural killer cells thereof, and more particularly, by applying a disk-based automated ultra-precision thin film separation technology to minimize the separation deviation according to the manual method, high-purity natural It relates to a natural killer cell separation apparatus capable of isolating killer cells in high yield while minimizing stress in the separation process, and a method for isolating natural killer cells thereof.

Anticancer treatment using immune cells has received much attention in recent years because it is superior to existing treatments in terms of superiority of anticancer effects because it has significantly fewer side effects such as systemic toxicity or the risk of recurrence of second-generation anticancer drugs that occur in existing first-generation anticancer drugs. are receiving

Immune cell therapy using natural killer cells (NK cells, Natural Killer cells) is one of the anticancer immune cell therapy therapies known as the fourth anticancer therapy. has a

Among various immune cells, natural killer cells, unlike T cells, can be administered as a cell therapy even if they are not the patient's own cells, and therefore can be developed and used as a therapeutic agent at a relatively low cost. In addition, due to its high cytotoxicity, it can be used for the treatment of solid cancers as well as blood cancers, which have previously been confirmed to be effective using T cells, and has great potential as a therapeutic agent for the treatment of various types of cancer.

These natural killer cells are produced by separating them from blood. In the case of the conventional natural killer cell isolation method, for example, in the separation process, physical stress such as high g-force or chemical stress such as antibody binding is used. Due to this, there was a problem that high sensitivity was generated or unwanted activation was induced.

In addition, in the case of the DGC separation method among the conventional natural killer cell separation methods, there is a fear that unwanted cell contamination or loss of natural killer cells may occur during the natural killer cell layer extraction process of the pipetting method.

Alternatively, in the conventional separation method, there was a possibility that activation of natural killer cells was induced due to high centrifugal force, which could result in loss or breakage of natural killer cells.

Therefore, a novel device for separating natural killer cells and a method for separating them with a disk-based ultra-precision thin film separation technology that can minimize the process time and stress applied to cells during the separation process and prevent the activation of natural killer cells is in demand.

As related prior art, there is Republic of Korea Patent Registration No. 10-1760764 (Title of the Invention: Culture Method for Mass Proliferation of NK Cells) and the like.

The embodiment of the present invention minimizes the separation deviation according to the manual method by applying the disk-based automated ultra-precision thin film separation technology, so that high-purity natural killer cells can be separated in high yield, while minimizing the stress in the separation process. Provided are an apparatus for isolating natural killer cells and a method for isolating natural killer cells thereof.

The problem to be solved by the present invention is not limited to the problem(s) mentioned above, and another problem(s) not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

The device for separating natural killer cells according to an embodiment of the present invention is provided to be interconnected in a rotatable disk body and the disk body, and uses the centrifugal force and density gradient material generated when the disk body rotates to extract natural killer cells from the blood. It may include a plurality of chambers for separating (Natural Killer cell).

According to one side, the plurality of chambers are provided in the disk body, blood and a first density gradient medium (DGM, density gradient medium) are compartmentally accommodated, and a plasma layer by centrifugal force generated when the disk body rotates, A main chamber in which a peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) layer, a first density gradient material (DGM) layer, and an erythrocyte layer are formed, and a bead connected to the main chamber, the peripheral moved from the main chamber A mixing side chamber for mixing the blood mononuclear cell layer and the beads, and the peripheral blood mononuclear cell layer in which the beads are mixed, which is connected to the mixing side chamber and is provided with a 2 density gradient material, moved from the mixing side chamber, the second A separation side chamber divided into a layer of natural killer cells and a layer of beads with a density gradient material therebetween, and a natural killer cell separation chamber connected to the separation side chamber and accommodating the natural killer cells moved from the separation side chamber may include.

According to one side, the main chamber may include a blood receiving space in which the blood is introduced and accommodated, and a material receiving space partitioned by the blood receiving space and a partition wall to receive and receive the first density gradient material.

According to one side, the partition wall may be inclined upward from the blood receiving space to the material receiving space.

According to one side, the first density gradient material may be a Ficoll having a higher density than plasma and peripheral blood mononuclear cells and a smaller density than red blood cells.

According to one side, it is provided on the disk body so as to be connected to the main chamber, it may further include a plasma separation chamber in which the plasma forming the plasma layer is separated.

According to one side, between the main chamber and the plasma separation chamber, between the main chamber and the mixing side chamber, between the mixing side chamber and the separation side chamber, between the separation side chamber and the natural killer cell separation chamber in a channel connected by a , and the channel may be provided with an opening/closing valve for opening/closing.

According to one side, the mixing side chamber may be provided in a funnel shape, and a channel connected to the separation side chamber may be connected to the collecting part.

According to one side, the beads provided in the mixing side chamber have a magnetism, a magnet is provided outside the separation side chamber, and the peripheral blood mixed with the beads moved from the mixing side chamber to the separation side chamber Mononuclear cells may be separated into a layer of natural killer cells and a layer of beads by the second density gradient material and the magnet.

According to one side, CD3, CD14, CD36, MHC class II DR/DP, CDw123 and CD235a antibodies may be bound to the surface of the bead, and blood components other than natural killer cells in whole blood are bound to the antibody. Since it can be captured by the bead layer, only natural killer cells can be isolated by separation of the bead layer.

According to one side, the second density gradient material may be Percoll having a higher density than natural killer cells and a smaller density than beads.

According to one side, the plurality of chambers include a buffer chamber, a blood chamber and a main chamber formed in a line in a direction away from the center of the disk body, and Phosphate Buffer Saline (PBS) is injected into the buffer chamber, and the Whole blood and an erythrocyte-labeled antibody for selectively removing erythrocytes from the whole blood are injected into the blood chamber, and a density gradient material may be injected into the main chamber.

According to one side, the plurality of chambers are provided at one side of the main chamber and include a plasma separation chamber for separating plasma and plasma, which are uppermost layers of blood layers generated as a result of centrifugation in the main chamber, and the other side of the main chamber. It may further include a natural killer cell separation chamber provided in the main chamber for separating the natural killer cells from the blood layer generated as a result of centrifugation in the main chamber.

According to one side, after injecting PBS into the buffer chamber, injecting whole blood and antibody into the blood chamber, injecting a density gradient material into the main chamber, and mixing to attach the antibody to red blood cells, the After lowering the PBS in the buffer chamber into the blood chamber, the whole blood from which red blood cells have been removed in the blood chamber and the PBS are mixed, and then the PBS-mixed whole blood is sent to the main chamber and centrifuged to form a density gradient material layer It is possible to form the blood layer comprising.

According to one side, plasma and PBS formed in the uppermost layer of the blood layer formed in the main chamber may be sent to the plasma separation chamber, and then the natural killer cells in the blood layer may be sent to the natural killer cell separation chamber.

According to one side, the buffer chamber and the blood chamber may be provided with a bent inlet to prevent the PBS or whole blood from leaving during the mixing process.

According to one side, a channel for connection is provided between the blood chamber and the main chamber, between the main chamber and the plasma separation chamber, and between the main chamber and the natural killer cell separation chamber, and the channel is formed by electromagnetic waves or heat. An open/close valve may be provided.

According to one side, the disk body may include a central portion connected to the rotation driving unit and a plurality of divided portions respectively coupled to the central portion, and a plurality of chambers may be provided in each of the plurality of divided portions.

On the other hand, in the natural killer cell separation method of the natural killer cell separation apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, an inflow step of introducing blood into the blood receiving space provided in the main chamber and introducing a first density gradient material into the material receiving space and a blood layer forming step of rotating the disk body to form the blood and the first density gradient material in the main chamber into a plurality of blood layers; a mixing step of moving to and mixing the beads in the mixing side chamber, and moving the peripheral blood mononuclear cells in which the beads are mixed from the mixing side chamber to the separation side chamber, and then a second provided in the separation side chamber A separation step of separating natural killer cells and beads based on a second density gradient material using the magnetic force of the density gradient material and a magnet adjacent to the separation side chamber, and the natural killer cells from the separation side chamber and obtaining natural killer cells by separating them into an isolation chamber.

According to one side, during the inflow step, 1000ul of the blood may be introduced into the blood receiving space of the main chamber and 2000ul of the first density gradient material may be introduced into the material receiving space of the main chamber.

According to one aspect, the method may further include a plasma separation step performed between the blood layer forming step and the mixing step, and separating the plasma generated during the blood layer forming step into a plasma separation chamber connected to the main chamber.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to minimize the separation deviation according to the automated method, so that high-purity natural killer cells can be isolated at a high yield, and stress in the separation process can be minimized, so that the separation of natural killer cells can be efficiently performed. can run

1 is a perspective view schematically showing the disc body of the natural killer cell separation device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically illustrating a configuration of a plurality of chambers shown in FIG. 1 .
3 is a view showing a state after the blood and the first density gradient material in the main chamber shown in FIG. 2 are centrifuged.
Figure 4 is a flow chart of the natural killer cell separation method of the natural killer cell separation apparatus of the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating the inflow step shown in FIG. 4 .
FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a blood layer forming step shown in FIG. 4 .
7 is a diagram illustrating the plasma separation step shown in FIG. 4 .
FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating the mixing step shown in FIG. 4 .
9 is a diagram illustrating the separation step shown in FIG. 4 .
FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an acquisition step shown in FIG. 4 .
11 is a plan view of an apparatus for separating natural killer cells according to another embodiment of the present invention.
12 is a view showing the structure of a chamber provided in a divided portion of the disc body shown in FIG. 11 .
13 is a view sequentially illustrating the separation process of natural killer cells according to the cell separation apparatus shown in FIG. 11 .
14 and 15 are plan views of an apparatus for separating natural killer cells according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Advantages and/or features of the present invention and methods of achieving them will become apparent with reference to the embodiments described below in detail in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments disclosed below, but will be embodied in various different forms, and only these embodiments allow the disclosure of the present invention to be complete, and common knowledge in the art to which the present invention pertains It is provided to fully inform those who have the scope of the invention, and the present invention is only defined by the scope of the claims. Like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a perspective view schematically showing a disc body of a natural killer cell separation device according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically illustrating the configuration of a plurality of chambers shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 3 FIG. 2 is a view showing a state after the blood and the first density gradient material in the main chamber shown in FIG. 2 are centrifuged.

Natural killer cell separation apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, although not shown, may include a rotation drive unit, and a disk body (100, see FIG. 1) rotated by the rotation drive unit.

In addition, although not shown, it may include an upper cover covering the disk body 100, and may include an electromagnetic wave generator for opening and closing the on/off valve provided in the disk body 100, and a control unit for controlling the above-described components. may include

However, it goes without saying that, in addition to the electromagnetic wave generating unit, a heat generating unit that opens and closes the opening/closing valve through fluid control may be applied.

In other words, the disk body 100 can be rotated by driving the rotation drive unit under the control of the control unit, and thus the separation process for blood is carried out in the disk body 100 so that natural killer cells can be extracted. .

As will be described later, the disk body 100 is provided with a plurality of chambers 110 , 120 , 130 , 140 , 150 , and these chambers 110 , 120 , 130 , 140 , 150 serve as channels 105 (refer to FIG. 2 ). connected and an on/off valve 106 may be mounted within the channel 105 . The electromagnetic wave generator can open the on-off valve 106 at a desired time by providing a laser or heat to the on-off valve 106, thereby discharging substances generated during the separation process for blood into the respective chambers 110, 120, 130, 140, 150).

1 and 2, the disc body 100 of the natural killer cell separation device of this embodiment will be mainly described with reference to, as described above, the natural killer cell separation device of this embodiment, the disc body 100, and A plurality of chambers 110 , 120 , 130 , 140 , 150 are provided, that is, the main chamber 110 of the present embodiment, the plasma separation chamber 120 , the mixing side chamber 130 , and the separation side chamber 140 . ), and may include a natural killer cell separation chamber 150 .

Referring to FIG. 1 , a total of four chamber structures may be provided in the disk body 100 of the present embodiment. That is, a total of four main chambers 110 are provided at intervals of 90 degrees in the circumferential direction with respect to the center of the disk body 100 , and in each main chamber 110 , a plasma separation chamber 120 , and a mixing side chamber 130 , the separation side chamber 140 , and the natural killer cell separation chamber 150 are connected to each other.

However, the structure of the main chamber 110 and the chambers 120, 130, 140, and 150 connected thereto is not limited to FIG. 1, and may be formed in a structure of a larger number of chambers or a smaller number of chambers. Of course.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 for one chamber structure, the main chamber 110 is provided in the radial direction of the disk body 100 . The main chamber 110 may have a rectangular shape elongated from a portion adjacent to the center of the disk body 100 to a portion adjacent to the outer edge of the disk body 100 when viewed from above.

In addition, when the main chamber 110 is viewed from the side as shown in FIG. 3 , the main chamber 110 includes a blood receiving space 111 into which blood B flows and receiving, and a blood receiving space 111 . and a partition wall 115 and may include a material receiving space 113 in which a first density gradient material (D1, Density Gradient Medium) is introduced and accommodated.

3, the blood receiving space 111 has a slightly deeper depth than the material receiving space 113, which is, for example, 2000ul of blood B is introduced into the blood receiving space 111. This is because, for example, 1000ul of the first density gradient material D1 is introduced and accommodated in the material receiving space 113 .

However, their shape is not limited thereto, and the capacity of the blood B or the first density gradient material D1 accommodated in each of the accommodation spaces 111 and 113 is not limited to the above numerical values.

The partition wall 115 formed in the main chamber 110 has a shape inclined upward from the blood receiving space 111 to the material receiving space 113, and this causes the disk body 100 to rotate to form blood B and When a centrifugal force is applied to the first density gradient material D1, a blood layer may be formed as shown in the lower drawing of FIG. 3 .

In other words, when the disk body 100 is rotated, the blood B in the blood receiving space 111 and the first density gradient material D1 in the material receiving space 113 are transferred to the plasma layer F1 by centrifugal force. Plasma), the peripheral blood mononuclear cell layer (F2, PBMS layer), the first density gradient material layer (D1), it can be separated into a red blood cell layer (F3, RBC).

At this time, as described above, when the introduced amount of the blood (B) is 2000ul and the introduced amount of the first density gradient material (D1) is 1000ul, after centrifugation, the plasma layer (F1) is 930ul, and peripheral blood The mononuclear cell layer (F2) is 200ul, the first density gradient material layer (D1) is 1000ul, and the red blood cell layer (F3) may be separated to have an amount of 870ul.

Referring to FIG. 3 , the plasma layer F1 is formed from the middle portion of the blood receiving space 111 to the middle portion of the partition wall 115 , and the peripheral blood mononuclear cell layer F2 is formed on a portion of the partition wall 115 . The first density gradient material layer D1 and the red blood cell layer F3 may be formed in the material receiving space 113 .

Here, the first density gradient material D1 may be a Ficoll having a higher density than plasma and peripheral blood mononuclear cells and a smaller density than red blood cells, but is not limited thereto.

On the other hand, the plasma separation chamber 120, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, is connected by a channel 105 at one side of the main chamber 110, more precisely, the main plasma layer (F1) is formed One end of the channel 105 is connected to a part of the chamber 110 and the other end of the channel 105 is connected to the plasma separation chamber 120, so that the plasma F1 is received from the main chamber 110 after centrifugation and received. can

As described above, the opening/closing valve 106 is mounted on the channel 105 connecting the main chamber 110 and the plasma separation chamber 120 , for example, when electromagnetic waves or heat are applied to the opening/closing valve 105 . When the valve 105 is opened, the plasma F1 may move from the main chamber 110 to the plasma separation chamber 120 .

Since this is also applied to the channel 105 for connection of other chambers to be described later, a description thereof will be omitted.

On the other hand, the mixing side chamber 130 of this embodiment is connected to the channel 105 from the other side of the main chamber 110, more precisely, a part of the main chamber 110 in which the peripheral blood mononuclear cell layer F2 is formed and Connected. Therefore, the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (F2) separated after centrifugation of the disc body 100 may be moved to the mixing side chamber 130 .

A bead 135 (refer to FIG. 5 ) may be provided in the mixing side chamber 130 of the present embodiment. Accordingly, the peripheral blood mononuclear cells F2 moved from the main chamber 110 to the mixing side chamber 130 may be mixed with the beads 135 .

Since this mixing side chamber 130 has a funnel shape that gathers toward the outside of the disc body 100 as shown in FIG. 2, the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (F21, FIG. 8) in which the beads are mixed are It may be gathered in the collected portion of the mixing side chamber 130 .

The bead 135 of this embodiment may be a magnetic microbead. However, the present invention is not limited thereto.

On the other hand, the separation side chamber 140 of this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2 , is provided in the outer direction of the separation side chamber 140 , and the part where the mixing side chamber 130 is collected and the separation side based on FIG. 2 . The upper side of the chamber 140 is connected to the channel, so that the bead-mixed peripheral blood mononuclear cells F21 may be moved to the separation side chamber 140 .

The second density gradient material D2 may be introduced and accommodated in the separation side chamber 140 . A magnet 160 is provided on the outside of the separation side chamber 140, so the peripheral blood mononuclear cells F21 mixed with the beads moved from the mixing side chamber 130 to the separation side chamber 140 are magnets 160. It can be separated into natural killer cells (F22, NK cells, see FIG. 9) and beads 135 by the magnetic force and the second density gradient material (D2) applied from the.

That is, based on the second density gradient material (D2), there is a natural killer cell (F22) on one side (upper side based on FIG. 2), and on the other side (lower side based on FIG. 2) there is a bead 135. . Since the bead 135 receives a magnetic force (attractive force) by the magnet 160 , the natural killer cells F22 and the bead 135 may be separated.

Here, the second density gradient material (D2) may be a Percoll having a higher density than the natural killer cells (F22) and a lower density than the beads (135), but is not limited thereto.

On the other hand, the natural killer cell separation chamber 150 of this embodiment is connected to the separation side chamber 140, the natural killer cells (F22) are moved from the separation side chamber 140 to the natural killer cell separation chamber 150, Killer cells (F22) can finally be isolated.

Hereinafter, a natural killer cell separation method of the natural killer cell separation apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention having the above-described configuration will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5 .

Figure 4 is a flow chart of the natural killer cell separation method of the natural killer cell separation apparatus of the present invention, Figures 5 to 10 are diagrams expressing the steps according to the flow chart of Figure 4.

As shown in these figures, the natural killer cell separation method according to an embodiment of the present invention includes an inflow step (S100) of introducing blood and a first density gradient material (D1) into the main chamber 110 (S100), and the disc body A blood layer forming step (S200) of rotating the 100 to form the blood (B) and the first density gradient material (D1) in the main chamber 110 into a plurality of blood layers (S200), and a plasma (F1) of the formed blood layers A plasma separation step (S300) of separating the , into the plasma separation chamber 120, and a mixing step of separating the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (F2) from the formed blood layer into the mixing side chamber 130 and mixing them with the beads 135 ( S400) and the bead-mixed peripheral blood mononuclear cells (F21) are moved to the separation side chamber 140, and then the natural killer cells (F22) and the beads using the second density gradient material (D2) and the magnet 160 A separation step (S500) of isolating (135), and an acquisition step of obtaining natural killer cells (F22) by separating the natural killer cells (F22) from the separation side chamber 140 into the natural killer cell separation chamber 150 ( S600) may be included.

As shown in FIG. 5 , during the inflow step ( S100 ) of the present embodiment, the blood (B) is introduced and accommodated in the blood receiving space 111 , and the first density gradient material ( D1 ) is introduced into the material receiving space 113 . can be imported and accepted.

As shown in FIG. 6 , in the blood layer forming step (S200) of this embodiment, the plasma layer (F1), the peripheral blood mononuclear cell layer (F2), the first density by using the centrifugal force generated when the disk body 100 is rotated. The gradient material layer (D1) and the red blood cell layer (F3) may be formed, thereby forming a basis for separation of the plasma layer (F1) and the peripheral blood mononuclear cell layer (F2).

7, in the plasma separation step (S300) of this embodiment, the opening/closing valve 106 of the channel 105 connecting the main chamber 110 and the plasma separation chamber 120 is opened to open the plasma separation chamber ( The plasma F1 may be separated in 120 .

As shown in FIG. 8 , in the mixing step S400 of this embodiment, the peripheral blood mononuclear cells F2 and the beads 135 moved from the main chamber 110 to the mixing side chamber 130 may be mixed.

As shown in Figure 9, during the separation step (S500) of this embodiment, the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (F21) mixed with beads are moved from the mixing side chamber 130 to the separation side chamber 140, and then the separation side chamber ( 140) by the action of the second density gradient material (D2) and the magnetic force applied from the magnet 160 within the natural killer cells (F22) and the beads 135 may form a separated layer.

As shown in Figure 10, during the acquisition step (S600) of this embodiment, natural killer cells (F22) are separated from the separation side chamber 140 to the natural killer cell separation chamber 160, and through this, natural killer cells (F22) ) can be obtained.

When describing the conditions of this process, 80ul of the antibody can be applied, the magnetic beads 135 can be applied 400ul, and the rotation of the disk body 100 for 15 minutes under these conditions can be made. Wash is not applied, and the magnet operation time can be applied to 2 minutes, but is not limited thereto.

As such, according to an embodiment of the present invention, by applying a disk-based automated ultra-precision thin film separation technology, the separation deviation according to the manual method can be minimized to separate high-purity natural killer cells in a high yield while the separation process stress can be minimized.

Meanwhile, hereinafter, the cell separation apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention will be described, but the description of parts substantially corresponding to the cell separation apparatus of the above-described embodiment will be omitted.

11 is a plan view of an apparatus for separating natural killer cells according to another embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 12 is a view showing the chamber structure provided in the divided portion of the disc body shown in FIG. 11, and FIG. 13 is shown in FIG. It is a diagram sequentially illustrating the separation process of natural killer cells according to the illustrated cell separation apparatus.

As shown in these figures, the natural killer cell separation apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention may include a first split-type disc body 200 .

First, the divided disk body 200 of the present embodiment may include a central portion 201 to which the rotation drive unit is coupled, and a divided portion 205 detachably coupled to the four corners of the central portion 201 . .

11 and 12, the four corners of the central portion 201 may be provided with a curved groove 202 with an inwardly curved end, and the divided portion 205 has a hook coupled to the groove 202. A member 206 may be provided. Thus, the divided portion 205 can be coupled to or separated from the central portion 201 .

In addition, a plurality of chambers may be provided in each divided portion 205 . The plurality of chambers of the present embodiment may include a buffer chamber 220 , a blood chamber 230 , and a main chamber 210 that are formed in a line away from the portion facing the central portion 201 .

In addition, a plasma separation chamber 240 and a natural killer cell separation chamber 250 may be provided on both sides of the main chamber 210 .

By this configuration, from the buffer chamber 220 to the blood chamber 230 , from the blood chamber 230 to the main chamber 210 , and from the main chamber 210 to the plasma separation chamber 240 or natural killer cell separation on both sides Reactive substances may be moved to the chamber 250 , and natural killer cells may be finally isolated.

In other words, PBS (Phosphate Buffer Saline) is injected into the buffer chamber 220 , an erythrocyte-labeled antibody for selectively removing red blood cells from whole blood and whole blood is injected into the blood chamber 230 , and a density gradient is injected into the main chamber 210 . A substance may be injected.

Here, the buffer chamber 220 and the blood chamber 230 may be provided with a bent inlet 225 to prevent the PBS or whole blood from escaping during the mixing process.

In addition, between the blood chamber 230 and the main chamber 210, between the main chamber 210 and the plasma separation chamber 240, between the main chamber 210 and the natural killer cell separation chamber 250 for a connection channel ( 208 is provided, and the channel 208 may be provided with a valve 209 that is opened and closed by electromagnetic waves or heat.

Accordingly, the valve 209 made of, for example, a wax material may be opened using an electromagnetic wave generator or a heat generator at an appropriate stage in the cell separation process.

On the other hand, hereinafter, a process of separating natural killer cells by the cell separation apparatus of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 13 .

First, as shown in (a) of FIG. 13 , 1 ml of PBS 271 is injected into the buffer chamber 220 , and 1 ml of whole blood 272 and 1 ml of antibody 273 are injected into the blood chamber 230 , for example. 50ul is injected, and 0.7ml of the density gradient material 274 is injected into the main chamber 210 .

Subsequently, as shown in (b), in the blood chamber 230, a mixing process is performed for, for example, about 20 minutes in order to generate the whole blood 275 to which the antibody is attached to the red blood cells.

Then, as shown in (c), after moving the PBS 271 in the buffer chamber 220 to the blood chamber 230, as shown in (d), in the blood chamber 230, the whole blood ( 275) and PBS 271 can be mixed for about 60 seconds.

Next, as shown in (e), the valve 209 between the blood chamber 230 and the main chamber 210 is opened to lower the mixed whole blood 276 into the main chamber 210 . Thereafter, as shown in (f), the blood layer may be formed by centrifuging the whole blood 276 using the density gradient material 274 in the main chamber 210 .

Then, as shown in (g), the plasma and PBS 277 in the uppermost layer of the formed blood layer are separated by a plasma separation chamber 240, and then, as shown in (h), natural killer cells 276 By separating into the natural killer cell separation chamber 250, it is possible to finish the natural killer cell separation process.

On the other hand, as described above, although the chamber structure according to another embodiment of the present invention may be provided in the divided disk body, it is natural that it may be provided in the integrated disk body, which will be described with reference to FIGS. 14 and 15 . .

14 and 15 are plan views of an apparatus for separating natural killer cells according to another embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 14 , a total of six chamber structures may be provided in the integrated disk body 300 , and as shown in FIG. 15 , a total of three chamber structures may be provided in the integrated disk body 400 . have. Of course, it is not limited to this number.

Although specific embodiments according to the present invention have been described so far, various modifications are possible without departing from the scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of the present invention should not be limited to the described embodiments, but should be defined by the claims described below as well as the claims and equivalents.

As described above, although the present invention has been described with reference to the limited embodiments and drawings, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, which are various modifications and Transformation is possible. Accordingly, the spirit of the present invention should be understood only by the claims described below, and all equivalents or equivalent modifications thereof will fall within the scope of the spirit of the present invention.

100: disk body
105: channel
106: on-off valve
110: main chamber
111: blood receiving space
113: material receiving space
115: bulkhead
120: plasma separation chamber
130: mixing side chamber
135: bead
140: separation side chamber
150: natural killer cell isolation chamber
160: magnet
B: blood
D1: first density gradient material
D2: second density gradient material
F1: Plasma or its layer
F2: peripheral blood mononuclear cells or layers thereof
F21: peripheral blood mononuclear cells mixed with beads
F22: natural killer cells
F3: red blood cell layer

Claims (20)

Rotatable disk body; and
a plurality of chambers provided to be interconnected in the disc body and for separating natural killer cells from blood using centrifugal force and density gradient material generated when the disc body rotates;
Natural killer cell separation device comprising a.
According to claim 1,
The plurality of chambers,
It is provided in the disc body, and blood and a first density gradient medium (DGM) are compartmentally accommodated, and a plasma layer, a peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) layer, a second 1 A main chamber in which a density gradient material (DGM) layer and a red blood cell layer are formed;
a mixing side chamber connected to the main chamber and having a bead and mixing the beads with the peripheral blood mononuclear cell layer moved from the main chamber;
The peripheral blood mononuclear cell layer, which is connected to the mixing side chamber and has 2 density gradient materials, in which the beads moved from the mixing side chamber are mixed, with the second density gradient material therebetween, a layer of natural killer cells and beads divided into layers of separate side chambers; and
A natural killer cell separation device connected to the separation side chamber and comprising a natural killer cell separation chamber in which the natural killer cells moved from the separation side chamber are accommodated.
3. The method of claim 2,
The main chamber,
a blood receiving space into which the blood is introduced; and
A natural killer cell separation device comprising a material receiving space partitioned by the blood receiving space and the partition wall and receiving the first density gradient material.
4. The method of claim 3,
The partition wall is a natural killer cell separation device, characterized in that inclining upward toward the material receiving space from the blood receiving space.
3. The method of claim 2,
The first density gradient material is a natural killer cell separation device, characterized in that the density is greater than plasma and peripheral blood mononuclear cells and a smaller density than red blood cells (Ficoll).
3. The method of claim 2,
Natural killer cell separation apparatus, which is provided on the disk body so as to be connected to the main chamber, further comprising a plasma separation chamber in which the plasma forming the plasma layer is separated.
7. The method of claim 6,
A channel is connected between the main chamber and the plasma isolation chamber, between the main chamber and the mixing side chamber, between the mixing side chamber and the isolation side chamber, and between the isolation side chamber and the natural killer cell isolation chamber,
Natural killer cell separation device, characterized in that provided with an opening/closing valve for opening and closing in the channel.
3. The method of claim 2,
The mixing side chamber is provided in a funnel shape, and the natural killer cell separation device, characterized in that the channel connected to the separation side chamber is connected to the collecting portion.
3. The method of claim 2,
The bead provided in the mixing side chamber has a magnetism,
A magnet is provided on the outside of the separation side chamber, and the peripheral blood mononuclear cells mixed with the beads moved from the mixing side chamber to the separation side chamber are natural killer cells by the second density gradient material and the magnet. A device for separating natural killer cells, characterized in that they are separated into a layer and a layer of beads.
10. The method of claim 9,
The second density gradient material is a natural killer cell separation device, characterized in that the density is higher than the natural killer cells and less dense than the beads Percoll (Percoll).
According to claim 1,
The plurality of chambers include a buffer chamber, a blood chamber and a main chamber that are formed in a line in a direction away from the center of the disk body,
Phosphate Buffer Saline (PBS) is injected into the buffer chamber,
Whole blood and an erythrocyte-labeled antibody for selectively removing erythrocytes from the whole blood are injected into the blood chamber,
Natural killer cell separation device, characterized in that the density gradient material is injected into the main chamber.
12. The method of claim 11,
The plurality of chambers are provided at one side of the main chamber and include a plasma separation chamber for separating plasma and plasma, which are uppermost layers of blood layers generated as a result of centrifugation in the main chamber, and the other side of the main chamber. Natural killer cell separation apparatus, characterized in that it further comprises a natural killer cell separation chamber for separating the natural killer cells from the blood layer generated as a result of centrifugation in the main chamber.
13. The method of claim 12,
After injecting PBS into the buffer chamber, injecting whole blood and antibody into the blood chamber, injecting a density gradient material into the main chamber, and mixing to attach the antibody to the erythrocytes, in the buffer chamber After lowering PBS into the blood chamber, the whole blood from which red blood cells have been removed in the blood chamber and the PBS are mixed, and then the PBS-mixed whole blood is sent to the main chamber, and then centrifuged to centrifuge the blood containing the density gradient material layer. A device for separating natural killer cells, characterized in that it forms a layer.
14. The method of claim 13,
Plasma and PBS formed in the uppermost layer of the blood layer formed in the main chamber are sent to the plasma separation chamber, and then the natural killer cells in the blood layer are sent to the natural killer cell separation chamber.
12. The method of claim 11,
Natural killer cell separation device, characterized in that the buffer chamber and the blood chamber is provided with a bent inlet to prevent the escape of PBS or whole blood during the mixing process.
13. The method of claim 12,
A channel for connection is provided between the blood chamber and the main chamber, between the main chamber and the plasma isolation chamber, and between the main chamber and the natural killer cell isolation chamber, and the channel has a valve that is opened and closed by electromagnetic waves or heat Natural killer cell separation device, characterized in that provided.
According to claim 1,
The disk body,
a central portion connected to the rotary drive; and
It includes a plurality of divided parts each coupled to the central part,
Natural killer cell separation device, characterized in that a plurality of chambers are provided in each of the plurality of division parts.
A rotatable disk body, provided to be interconnected in the disk body, and a main chamber, a mixing side chamber, and a separation side chamber to separate natural killer cells from blood using centrifugal force and density gradient material generated when the disk body rotates In the natural killer cell separation method of the natural killer cell separation device comprising a natural killer cell separation chamber,
an inflow step of introducing blood into the blood receiving space provided in the main chamber and introducing a first density gradient material into the material receiving space;
a blood layer forming step of rotating the disk body to form the blood and the first density gradient material in the main chamber into a plurality of blood layers;
a mixing step of moving peripheral blood mononuclear cells among the plurality of blood layers to the mixing side chamber and then mixing them with beads in the mixing side chamber;
After moving the bead-mixed peripheral blood mononuclear cells from the mixing side chamber to the separation side chamber, the second density gradient material provided in the separation side chamber and the magnetic force of a magnet adjacent to the separation side chamber are used 2 A separation step of separating natural killer cells and beads based on the density gradient material; and
Natural killer cell separation method of a natural killer cell separation device comprising the step of obtaining natural killer cells by separating the natural killer cells from the separation side chamber into the natural killer cell separation chamber.
19. The method of claim 18,
During the inflow step, 1000ul of the blood is introduced into the blood receiving space of the main chamber and 2000ul of the first density gradient material is introduced into the material receiving space of the main chamber. Natural killer cells of the device for separating natural killer cells separation method.
19. The method of claim 18,
Natural killer cell separation, which is executed between the blood layer forming step and the mixing step, further comprising a plasma separation step of separating the plasma generated during the blood layer forming step into a plasma separation chamber connected to the main chamber A method for isolation of natural killer cells in the device.

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