JP2019211212A - Micro sampling chip and inspection device using the micro sampling chip - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve quantitativeness of a sample brought into contact with a sensor part of an inspection and surely prevent contamination. A micro-sampling chip 1 is an inlet 2 for inhaling a sample, a space communicating with the inlet 2, and a measurement electrode 12 for performing an electrochemical measurement of the sample, or a sample. When a test medium containing a chromophore having the property of exhibiting a chromogenic reaction derived from the components contained in the sample is provided inside, the sample inhaled from the inlet 2 is stored and the measurement is provided inside The inspection space 4 for contacting the inspection electrode 12 or the inspection medium, and the internal space 9 communicating with the inspection space 4, and one wall surface forming the internal space 9 is made of an elastic material having elasticity. And a pump portion 8 which is an elastic wall surface 16. By elastically deforming the elastic wall surface 16 of the pump portion 8, the sample is sucked into the inspection space 4 through the suction port 2. ing. [Selection diagram] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention is for performing tests such as environmental tests represented by heavy metal measurement, biochemical tests represented by using urine test paper, clinical tests, food tests represented by detecting residual pesticides, and the like. The present invention relates to a microsampling chip and an inspection apparatus thereof.

  Heavy metals such as cadmium, cobalt, mercury, copper, zinc and lead are harmful to the human body, and it is very important to know the amount of heavy metals contained in water and soil. Various methods for measuring heavy metals have been proposed and implemented (see Patent Documents 1 and 2). In addition, the problem of residual pesticides caused by spraying pesticides on foods such as grains, vegetables, and fruits is serious. In 2013, monocrotophos remained in vegetables in India, and 23 children aspire. A serious incident has occurred.

  In addition, being able to perform necessary tests accurately on the spot at medical and food inspection sites is important in ensuring subsequent diagnosis, prevention, and security. The ability to detect tests on the spot within minutes, and to measure the disease, food safety, and the presence or absence of residual pesticides enables patients to be diagnosed and administered as soon as possible. Can be ensured.

  Tests for specific substances in human urine and blood, immunoassays, pesticide residues, and soil contamination are generally performed using a test paper in which a color reagent is fixed on a paper medium such as filter paper. However, no technology has been established that enables simple and quick inspection at the site using test paper.

JP-A-11-174054 JP 2009-034041 A

  Electrochemical measurements and inspections using test strips are performed by bringing the sample into contact with a sensor part such as a measurement electrode or test paper. This is an important factor for reproducibility. Therefore, it is necessary to control the sample amount with high accuracy. In particular, when a small amount of sample such as several tens of μL is used, an accuracy of 0.1 μL is necessary, and it is difficult to control such a highly accurate sample amount with an inexpensive pipette. In an inspection method in which a small amount of sample is dropped onto an electrode or test paper exposed in the air, the sample concentration may change during the inspection due to evaporation of the sample into the air.

  In addition, a disposable tip is attached to the tip of a pipette that is used to inspect a certain amount of sample for the purpose of preventing contamination. In some cases, contamination is not reliably prevented. On the other hand, in the inspection method in which the sensor portion is immersed in the sample placed in the container and measured, the quantitative amount of the sample amount in contact with the sensor cannot be obtained. There is a problem that diffusion occurs due to the influence of electric charge or heat on the surface of the sensor portion, and the influence of the influence changes the surface concentration of the sample to reduce the reproducibility of the measured value.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to improve the quantitativeness of a sample brought into contact with a sensor portion of an inspection and to surely prevent contamination.

  A microsampling chip according to the present invention communicates with an intake port for inhaling a sample, an inspection space for storing a sample sucked from the intake port, and an inspection space for storing the sample sucked from the intake port. An inner space, and one wall surface forming the inner space is provided with a pump portion that is an elastic wall surface made of an elastic material having elasticity, and elastically deforming the elastic wall surface of the pump portion, A sample is configured to be sucked into the test space through the suction port. That is, the microsampling chip according to the present invention has its own pump function, and by pressing the elastic elastic material of the pump part having the pump function from the outside, the volume of the entire space of the channel in the chip is reduced. Then, the sample is sucked into the test space from the suction port by releasing the pressing of the elastic portion while the suction port is immersed in the sample.

  In a preferred embodiment, the micro-sampling chip has a distal end and a proximal end, the suction port is provided at the distal end, and the proximal end is held by an inspection device, and is disposed inside the proximal end side. The inspection space is provided.

  In a further preferred embodiment, the suction port and the inspection space communicate with each other via a fine flow path, and the internal space of the pump unit is larger than a total capacity of the fine flow path and the inspection space. A predetermined volume of the sample sucked from the suction port is introduced into the examination space. With such a configuration, a certain amount of sample always comes into contact with the measurement electrode or the inspection medium, so that the reproducibility of the inspection result is improved.

  A measurement electrode for performing electrochemical measurement of a sample is provided inside the inspection space, and when a predetermined amount of sample is stored in the inspection space, the sample and the measurement electrode come into contact with each other. It may be configured.

  In addition, an inspection medium including a coloring body having a property of exhibiting a coloring reaction derived from a component contained in the sample when the sample is brought into contact with the sample is provided in the inspection space. When a predetermined amount of sample is stored, the sample and the inspection medium may be in contact with each other.

  When the inspection medium is provided in the inspection space, a wall surface that forms the inspection space so that the inspection device that holds the base end can optically detect the color tone of the inspection medium. Among these, it is preferable that the wall surface on the base end side is made of a transparent material.

  Examples of the color former include those in which a color reagent that exhibits a color reaction according to the properties of a sample is held on a paper medium. Such a color body can be realized by, for example, a test paper conventionally used for urinalysis or the like.

  The inspection medium may include a plurality of color formers having different components that exhibit the color development reaction. Then, when a sample is sucked into the microsampling chip, a plurality of items can be inspected simultaneously for the sample.

  By the way, if the sample itself has a color, the colored body that touched the sample will be colored with the color of the sample, and the color development of the colored body cannot be measured correctly, which may affect the test results. It is done. Therefore, it is preferable that the inspection medium also includes a reference body having no property showing the color development reaction. By doing so, the color development of the color former can be correctly measured by the difference in color tone between the color former and the reference body when they are brought into contact with the sample.

  The inspection apparatus of the present invention using a microsampling chip in which the measurement electrode is provided in the inspection space includes a chip holding unit that holds the microsampling chip, and a microsampling chip that is held by the chip holding unit. A terminal for making electrical contact with the measurement electrode; and a measurement circuit electrically connected to the measurement electrode via the terminal and performing electrochemical measurement of the sample.

  The inspection apparatus of the present invention using a microsampling chip in which the inspection medium is provided in the inspection space includes a chip holding unit for holding the microsampling chip and the microsampling held by the chip mounting unit. A detection unit for optically detecting the color tone of the inspection medium of the chip; and a measurement circuit for measuring a color development reaction of the color former of the inspection medium based on a detection result by the detection unit. .

  In the above case, as the detection unit, a detector including a light receiving element for individually detecting red (R), green (G), and blue (B) light intensity can be used. In that case, the measurement circuit is configured to digitize the intensities of the red, green, and blue light obtained by the detection unit and detect the color tone of the inspection medium based on the numeric values. Yes. Then, the color tone of the inspection medium can be easily detected. In this case, the measurement circuit is configured to digitize the intensities of the red, green, and blue light obtained by the detection unit and detect the color tone of the inspection medium based on the numeric values. Preferably it is.

  Further, the color tone data of the inspection medium quantified as the intensity of R, G, and B may be transferred to a mobile phone or other device having a communication function using a wireless device such as WiFi.

  Further, the inspection apparatus of the present invention is configured such that the elastic wall surface of the pump part of the microsampling chip is sucked from the suction port of the microsampling chip held by the chip holding part. It is preferable to provide a pressing mechanism that performs pressing and releasing. Then, the sample can be automatically sucked into the examination space.

  In the microsampling chip of the present invention, there is an inspection space in which the measurement electrode or the inspection medium is provided and an internal space communicating with the inspection space, and one wall surface forming the internal space is elastic. Since the pump part which becomes the elastic wall surface which consists of an elastic material which has property is provided, and the sample is inhaled in the space for examination by elastically deforming the elastic wall surface of the pump part By placing inspection sensor parts such as measurement electrodes and inspection media in the inspection space, it is possible to ensure that the inspection medium is applied to the sample without having to drop the sample onto the sensor part. Can be contacted. Furthermore, since the pump part is also built in the microsampling chip, the sample can be brought into contact with the measurement electrode or the inspection medium without using a pipette, and contamination can be prevented. By making the microsampling chip disposable, a new microsampling chip can be used for each sample, and problems such as contamination and infection to workers can be solved.

  The inspection apparatus of the present invention using the microsampling chip in which the measurement electrode is provided in the inspection space is configured to perform electrochemical measurement of the sample by making electrical contact with the measurement electrode of the microsampling chip. Therefore, the electrochemical measurement of the sample can be performed easily and quickly with good reproducibility.

  In the inspection apparatus of the present invention using the micro sampling chip in which the inspection medium is provided in the inspection space, the color tone of the color medium of the inspection medium is detected by optically detecting the color tone of the inspection medium of the micro sampling chip. Since it is configured to measure, it is possible to easily and quickly inspect a sample using a colored body such as a test paper with good reproducibility.

It is a top view which shows one Example of a microsampling chip. It is sectional drawing which shows the internal structure of the Example. It is the perspective view seen from the front end side of the Example. It is the perspective view seen from the base end side of the Example. It is a top view which shows one Example of the test | inspection apparatus using the microsampling chip | tip of FIGS. 1-4. It is a top view which shows the other Example of a microsampling chip. It is sectional drawing which shows the internal structure of the Example. It is the perspective view seen from the base end side of the Example. It is a top view which shows one Example of the test | inspection apparatus using the microsampling chip | tip of FIGS. 6-8. It is a figure which shows an example of the measurement data by the inspection apparatus of FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the measurement data by the inspection apparatus of FIG.

  Embodiments of a microsampling chip and an inspection apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  An embodiment of the microsampling chip will be described with reference to FIGS.

  The microsampling chip 1 of this embodiment is used by being attached to the tip of an inspection device 20 (see FIG. 5) described later. The microsampling chip 1 is provided with a suction port 2 at the distal end, and is provided with a pump unit 8 for sucking a sample through the suction port 2 on the proximal end side. Inside the micro-sampling chip 1, there are a micro flow channel 6 extending from the front suction port 2 to the base end side, a test space 4 communicating with the suction port 2 through the micro flow channel 6, and an internal space of the pump unit 8. 9 and a fine flow path 10 that allows the inspection space 4 and the internal space 9 to communicate with each other.

  The internal space 9 of the pump unit 8 is formed by sealing an opening of a recess provided in the base end surface of the microsampling chip 1 with an elastic sheet 16 made of an elastic material such as hard silicon rubber or elastomer resin. That is, one wall surface forming the internal space 9 is an elastic wall surface made of an elastic material. Since the elastic sheet 16 made of an elastic material is elastically deformed by an external stress, the internal capacity of the internal space 9 of the pump unit 8 can be elastically changed by the external stress.

  After the internal wall 9 is crushed by pressing the elastic wall surface (that is, the elastic sheet 16) of the pump unit 8 from an external force, the internal capacity of the internal space 9 is restored to the original by the restoring force of the elastic sheet 16. In order to return to the size, the inside of the fine flow path 10, the inspection space 4, and the fine flow path 6 communicating with the internal space 9 is depressurized. At this time, since the suction port 2 is immersed in the sample, the sample is sucked into the test space 4 from the suction port 2 through the fine flow path 6.

  The internal space 9 of the pump unit 8 is formed to have a larger internal capacity than the total internal capacity of the test space 4 and the fine flow path 6, and the pump unit 8 is driven to inhale the sample. Sometimes, a predetermined amount of sample is reliably introduced into the inspection space 4. For example, when the internal volume of the inspection space 4 is about 100 μL and the internal volume of the fine flow path 6 is about 15 μL, the internal volume of the internal space 9 of the pump unit 8 is about 10 mL, so A predetermined amount of sample can be reliably introduced.

  In the inspection space 4, a measurement electrode 12 for performing electrochemical measurement of a sample is provided. The measurement electrode 12 is provided so that the electrode portion reliably contacts the sample when a predetermined amount of sample is introduced into the inspection space 4. A recess 14 into which a distal end portion 22 (see FIG. 5) of an inspection apparatus 20 described later is inserted is provided on the base end surface of the micro sampling chip 1. The recess 14 is adjacent to the inspection space 4 with the partition wall 15 therebetween. The measurement electrode 12 is inserted into the inspection space 4 so as to penetrate the partition wall 15 from the depression 14 side. A portion 12 a arranged on the depression 14 side of the measurement electrode 12 is a terminal for making electrical contact with the terminal 24 of the inspection apparatus 20.

  The partition 15 completely blocks the inspection space 4 and the depression 14 so that the sample introduced into the inspection space 4 does not enter the depression 14 side. Therefore, the sample sucked from the suction port 2 does not adhere to the inspection device 20 (see FIG. 5) using the microsampling chip 1.

  Here, as the measurement electrode 12, one in which an electrode part is insert-molded inside a plastic can be used. By using such a measurement electrode 12, it is possible to suppress oxidation of the electrode surface over time.

  In the above embodiment, the elastic wall surface made of the elastic sheet 16 of the pump unit 8 is provided on the base end surface of the microsampling chip 1. Thereby, the elastic wall surface of the pump unit 8 can be pressed by the pressing mechanism 32 (see FIG. 5) of the inspection apparatus 20, and the pump unit 8 can be driven. In addition, the pump part 8 of the microsampling chip 1 may be driven manually, and the elastic wall surface of the pump part 8 is located at another position, for example, in order to easily press the elastic wall surface of the pump part 8 with an operator's finger. You may be provided in the same plane as the plane in which the work space 4 is provided.

  An embodiment of an inspection apparatus using the micro sampling chip 1 will be described with reference to FIG.

  The inspection device 20 includes a distal end portion 22 shaped to fit with a recess 14 provided on the proximal end surface of the micro sampling chip 1, and makes electrical contact with the terminal 12 a of the micro sampling chip 1 inside the distal end portion 22. A terminal 24 for taking is provided. When the electrochemical measurement of the sample is performed, the microsampling chip 1 is mounted on the inspection apparatus 20 by fitting the distal end portion 22 of the inspection apparatus 20 into the recess 14 on the base end face of the microsampling chip 1. The tip portion 22 of the micro sampling chip 1 constitutes a chip holding portion for holding the micro sampling chip 1.

  Inside the inspection apparatus 20, a measurement circuit 26 for performing electrochemical measurement of the sample is provided. The measurement circuit 26 is electrically connected to the terminal 24. On the outer surface of the inspection apparatus 20, a display unit 28 for displaying a measurement result by the measurement circuit 26 is provided. The inspection apparatus 20 further includes a pressing mechanism 32 for pressing the elastic wall surface (elastic sheet 16) of the pump unit 8 on the base end surface of the micro sampling chip 1. The pressing mechanism 32 is a pump of the microsampling chip 1 mounted on the inspection device 20 by driving a pressing rod 30 provided perpendicular to the elastic sheet 16 in the axial direction (the direction of the arrow in FIG. 5). The elastic wall surface of the portion 8 is pressed and released. Although not shown, a switch for generating a signal for driving the pressing mechanism 32 is provided on the outer surface of the inspection device 20, and the pressing mechanism 32 is pressed by an operator by pressing the switch. Is driven, and the pump unit 8 of the microsampling chip 1 is driven.

  In this embodiment, an electric type is assumed as the pressing mechanism 32, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the pressing rod 30 is manually provided, that is, an operator is provided in the inspection device 20. The pressing rod 30 may be configured to operate by moving a lever or the like. Further, if the operator can press the elastic wall surface of the pump unit 8 of the microsampling chip 1 with a finger, the pressing mechanism 32 is not necessarily provided in the inspection device 20.

  In addition, the pressing mechanism 32 may be provided with a removal function for automatically removing the microsampling chip 1 from the inspection apparatus 20, that is, a function of driving the drive rod 30 larger than when the pump unit 8 is driven. Good.

  Next, another embodiment of the microsampling chip will be described with reference to FIGS.

  The microsampling chip 100 of this embodiment is used by being attached to the tip of an inspection apparatus 120 (see FIG. 9) described later. The micro-sampling chip 100 is provided with a suction port 102 at the distal end, and is provided with a pump unit 108 for sucking a sample through the suction port 102 on the proximal end side. Inside the microsampling chip 100, there are a fine flow channel 106 extending from the distal suction port 102 to the proximal end side, an inspection space 104 communicating with the suction port 102 via the fine flow channel 106, and an internal space of the pump unit 108. 109 and a fine flow path 110 that allows the inspection space 104 and the internal space 109 to communicate with each other. In addition, a protrusion 114 for the inspection device 120 to hold the micro sampling chip 100 is provided on the base end surface of the micro sampling chip 100.

  The inspection space 104 is configured such that the opening of the recess provided in the base end surface of the microsampling chip 100 is sealed with a transparent sheet 113. That is, the wall surface of the inspection space 104 facing the base end surface of the microsampling chip 100 is made of a transparent material. Examples of the material of the transparent sheet 113 include a transparent acrylic sheet.

  The internal space 109 of the pump unit 108 is formed by sealing an opening of a recess provided in the base end surface of the microsampling chip 100 with an elastic sheet 116 made of an elastic material such as hard silicon rubber or elastomer resin. That is, one wall surface forming the internal space 109 is an elastic wall surface made of an elastic material. Since the elastic sheet 116 made of an elastic material is elastically deformed by an external stress, the internal capacity of the internal space 109 of the pump unit 108 can be elastically changed by the external stress.

  After the internal wall 109 is crushed by pressing the elastic wall surface (that is, the elastic sheet 116) of the pump unit 108 from an external force, the internal capacity of the internal space 109 is restored to the original by the restoring force of the elastic sheet 116. In order to return to the size, the inside of the fine flow path 110, the inspection space 104, and the fine flow path 106 communicating with the internal space 9 is decompressed. At this time, since the suction port 102 is immersed in the sample, the sample is sucked into the test space 104 from the suction port 102 through the fine flow path 106.

  The internal space 109 of the pump unit 108 is formed to have a larger internal capacity than the total internal capacity of the test space 104 and the fine flow path 106, and the pump unit 108 is driven to inhale the sample. Sometimes, a predetermined amount of sample is reliably introduced into the inspection space 104. For example, when the internal volume of the inspection space 104 is about 100 μL and the internal volume of the microchannel 106 is about 15 μL, the internal volume of the internal space 109 of the pump unit 108 is set to about 10 mL, so that A predetermined amount of sample can be reliably introduced.

  In the inspection space 104, a base 111 for fitting and holding a substantially spherical, substantially prismatic or substantially cylindrical inspection medium 112 is provided (see FIG. 8), and the inspection medium 112 is provided on the base 111. Is fixed in the inspection space 104. The inspection medium 112 includes a color former that holds a color developing reagent that exhibits a color developing reaction derived from a specific component contained in a sample. By making the inspection medium 112 into a substantially spherical shape, a substantially prismatic shape, or a substantially cylindrical shape, when the sample comes into contact with the inspection medium 112, the sample is easily absorbed by the inspection medium 112, and is suitable for the inspection medium 112. It can promote proper color development. Examples of the material for holding the test reagent and forming the test medium 112 include cotton balls, filter paper, and sponges. The inspection medium 112 is provided so as to reliably contact the sample when a predetermined amount of the sample is introduced into the inspection space 104.

  The inspection medium 112 includes any medium that can be used for the colorimetric method. The colorimetric method is to compare the degree of coloration (color density) when a sample is infiltrated into a color former with the coloration degree of the same color reagent whose numerical value of the inspection item (concentration, pH, etc.) is known. This is a method for quantifying the inspection items of a sample. Not only when the measurement substance such as urobilinogen itself has color, but also when the measurement substance itself does not have color, the coloring reagent can be colored by a chemical reaction and quantified by its degree of color development. The colorimetric method is an analytical method used in many scenes such as food analysis, environmental analysis, and biochemical analysis.

  Examples of the test medium 112 include Ph test paper, urine test paper, sandwich immunoassay, environmental analysis test paper, agricultural chemical test paper, residual chlorine quantitative test paper, and surfactant quantitative test paper.

  The pH can be quantified by using a coloring reagent such as bromothymol blue (BTB), which shows the degree of color development according to the hydrogen ion concentration of the sample. BTB develops blue when the sample is alkaline, and red when the sample is acidic.

  The examination items of the urine test mainly include white blood cell concentration, urobilinogen concentration, protein concentration, pH, occult blood, specific gravity, ketone body amount, and glucose concentration, and there are coloring reagents for the respective examination items.

  By utilizing the present invention, measurement that requires a plurality of steps can be easily performed. For example, in the sandwich immunoassay, a sample containing the antigen to be measured is infiltrated into a test paper reagent filter paper on which an antibody is immobilized in advance, and then the sample solution is discharged, washed with a washing reagent, and then a solution containing a coloring reagent. Is reacted, washed, and the subsequent color development is measured. Examples of the coloring reagent include DAPI.

  In environmental analysis, the concentration of phenols, dissolved oxygen, fluorine compounds, cyanides, etc. is quantified. For phenols, the concentration of a red substance (antipyrine dye) produced when 4-aminoantipyrine and hexacyanoiron (III) are added can be quantified based on the degree of color development. Dissolved oxygen can be quantified by measuring the degree of color development when a potassium tartrate-sodium hydroxide solution and a methylene blue solution are added. The fluorine compound can be quantified by detecting a blue complex formed by reacting a complex of La (III) and alizarin complexone with fluorine ions from the degree of color development. Cyanide compounds can be quantified by measuring pyridine-piazolone absorbance.

  One example of a method for quantifying residual pesticides is hydrogen peroxide generated from aminoantipyrine, phenol, and oxidase by conjugating choline oxidase and peroxidase to choline, which is a degradation product generated by enzymatic degradation of acetylcholine with cholinesterase. A method of measuring the red color development degree of a quinoneimine dye by using a quinoneimine dye.

  As a method for quantifying residual agricultural chemicals, there is a method for quantifying the inhibition of acetylcholinesterase. In that case, the hydrogen ion concentration generated by the enzyme reaction is measured. In this case, as the test medium 112, a medium in which a pH reaction solution is impregnated on the front side of the test paper filter paper and a dried body of acetylcholinesterase and a dried body of acetylcholine are fixed on the back side can be used. When a sample is introduced into the inspection space 104 of the microsampling chip 100 and the sample is infiltrated into the inspection medium 112, acetylcholinesterase and acetylcholine react to generate hydrogen ions. The pH at that time is quantified according to the degree of color development of the pH reaction solution of the test medium 112. Since the pH reaction solution is blue at pH 8.5, its color is quantified. Specifically, R.I. G. Calculate for each digitized value of B (maximum value 255 for 8 bits, respectively) and give the value. For example, if the background is R = 50, G = 30, B = 40, and the measurement time is R = 60, G = 45, and B = 150, it is evaluated as blue. An R.R. G. A B filter (RGB filter in front of at least three light receiving elements) is installed, and the color of the inspection medium 112 is detected by data processing of the detection signal obtained by the detection unit 124. To do.

  Residual chlorine can be quantified by performing a colorimetric reagent of diethyl-p-phenylenediammonium (DPD) and measuring the degree of color change from pink to pink.

  The surfactant can be quantified by measuring the amount of light of 611 nm emitted by toluene extraction of ions generated by a chemical reaction with ethyl bio red.

  A plurality of inspection media 112 are arranged in a plane parallel to the base end surface of the microsampling chip 100. The plurality of test media 112 are different types of color formers, that is, color formers having a property of exhibiting a color reaction derived from different components. Thereby, measurement of a plurality of items can be performed simultaneously with a single inhalation of the sample.

  In addition, one of the plurality of test media 112 may be a reference body that does not have such a color-developing reaction property, that is, is not infiltrated with a color-developing reagent. By using one of the plurality of inspection media 112 as a reference body, even when the sample has a color, the color of the inspection medium 112 due to the color of the sample can be measured by the reference body. By subtracting the coloring condition from the color tone change amount of the color former, the color development degree of the color former can be accurately measured.

  Note that the inspection space 104 is not necessarily provided with a plurality of inspection media 112, and only one inspection medium 112 made of a color former may be provided.

  An example of an inspection apparatus using the micro sampling chip 100 will be described with reference to FIG.

  The inspection device 120 includes a hole 122 shaped to fit with a protrusion 114 provided on the base end surface of the microsampling chip 100, and the microsampling chip 100 is inserted into the hole 122 by fitting the protrusion 114 of the microsampling chip 100 into the hole 122. Hold. That is, the hole 114 constitutes a chip holding unit for holding the microsampling chip 100.

  The inspection apparatus 120 includes a detection unit 124 for optically detecting the color tone of the inspection medium 112 in the inspection space 104 of the micro sampling chip 100. The detection unit 124 can be realized by an imaging device such as a CCD camera. The inspection apparatus 120 further includes a measurement circuit 126 configured to measure a color tone change of the inspection medium 112 based on a detection signal from the detection unit 124. The measurement circuit 126 measures the attenuation amount (absorbance) of the red component, the green component, and the blue component in the inspection medium 112 based on the detection signal from the detection unit 124. If the attenuation of light of the red component, green component, and blue component is measured, the color tone of the inspection medium 112 can be measured as a numerical value. Such a measurement is performed before and after the sample is brought into contact with the inspection medium 112, and a difference in color tone is taken to measure a change in the color tone of the inspection medium 112 due to a color reaction derived from a specific component in the sample. be able to.

  Specifically, the background is measured before the sample is inhaled into the microsampling chip 100, for example, when the microsampling chip 100 is attached to the inspection apparatus 120. This operation is necessary not only in the case where the wavelength range exhibiting color development is visible light but also in all cases. Thereafter, the sample is sucked from the suction port 102 and introduced into the inspection space 104, the sample is infiltrated into the inspection medium 112 on which the coloring reagent for the inspection item is fixed, and then the coloring for the inspection item is performed after several seconds. Quantify the degree of. Regarding the infiltration of the sample into the inspection medium 112, the sample is inhaled into the microsampling chip 100, and after the sample is infiltrated into the inspection medium 112, the sample is immediately discharged and the color of the inspection medium 112 is confirmed. There are cases where it is better to do this.

  On the outer surface of the inspection apparatus 120, a display unit 128 for displaying the measurement result by the measurement circuit 126 is provided. The inspection device 120 further includes a pressing mechanism 132 for pressing the elastic wall surface (elastic sheet 116) of the pump unit 8 on the base end surface of the microsampling chip 100. The pressing mechanism 132 is a pump for the microsampling chip 100 attached to the inspection device 120 by driving a pressing rod 130 provided perpendicular to the elastic sheet 116 in the axial direction (the direction of the arrow in FIG. 9). The elastic wall surface of the portion 108 is pressed and released. Although not shown, a switch for generating a signal for driving the pressing mechanism 132 is provided on the outer surface of the inspection device 120, and the pressing mechanism 132 is pressed by the operator by pressing the switch. Is driven, and the pump unit 108 of the micro-sampling chip 100 is driven.

  Also in this embodiment, an electric type is assumed as the pressing mechanism 132, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the pressing rod 130 is manually provided, that is, an operator is provided in the inspection device 120. The pressing rod 130 may be operated by moving a lever or the like. In addition, as long as the operator can press the elastic wall surface of the pump unit 8 of the microsampling chip 100 with a finger, the pressing mechanism 132 is not necessarily provided in the inspection device 120.

  Further, the pressing mechanism 132 may be provided with a removal function for automatically removing the microsampling chip 100 from the inspection device 120, that is, a function for driving the drive rod 130 larger than when the pump unit 108 is driven. Good.

  The graph of FIG. 10 shows the measurement data obtained when the lead solution having a concentration of 1 ppm is inhaled into the microsampling chip 1 described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4 and the electrochemical measurement is performed using the inspection apparatus 20 of FIG. It is. The measurement method is differential pulse voltammetry (DPV), and the graph is swept from −1500 mV to 250 mV. In this graph, the DPV peak of lead appears, and it can be seen that lead can be detected appropriately.

The table shown in FIG. 11 is an example of measurement data obtained by the inspection apparatus 120 in FIG. In this measurement, a test medium 112 in which reagents for test items 1 to 11 are immersed in the test space 104 of the microsampling chip 100 is arranged, and the numerical values of the test items are adjusted as follows. The sample was aspirated into the test pipette tip 2 and performed.
(1) Urobilinogen 2.0 mgl / dL
(2) 20 occult blood / μL
(3) Protein 100 mg / dL
(4) Glucose 250mg / dL
(5) Ketone body 30mg / dL
(6) Bilirubin 1.0mg / dL
(7) Albumin 100 mg / dL
(8) Specific gravity 1.03
(9) Leukocytes 100 / dL
(10) pH pH 7
(11) Creatinine 150 mg / dL

  R, G, and B in FIG. 11 are the intensities of the red component, the green component, and the blue component obtained by image analysis for the color tone of the inspection medium 112 for each inspection item. “Before measurement” means before the sample is brought into contact with the inspection medium 112, and “after measurement” means after the sample is brought into contact with the inspection medium 112. As can be seen from the measurement data, the numerical values indicate that the color tone of each inspection medium 8 changes variously before and after the measurement, and a plurality of inspection items can be measured simultaneously. I understand that. As described above, the data digitized by R, B, and G can be transferred to a mobile phone or other device having a communication function for evaluation.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1,100 Microsampling chip 2,102 Suction port 4,104 Inspection space 6,10,106,110 Fine flow path 8,108 Pump part 9,109 Internal space of pump part 12 Measurement electrode 12a Terminal (microsampling chip side)
14 hollow 15 partition 16,116 elastic sheet (elastic wall surface)
20,120 Inspection device 22 Tip (chip holding part)
24 terminals (inspection device side)
26, 126 Measuring circuit 28, 128 Display unit 30, 130 Press rod 32, 132 Press mechanism 112 Inspection medium 113 Transparent sheet 114 Protrusion 122 Hole (chip holding unit)
124 detector

Claims (13)

An inlet for inhaling the sample;
A test space communicating with the suction port and storing a sample sucked from the suction port;
A pump section having an internal space communicating with the inspection space, and one wall surface forming the internal space being an elastic wall surface made of an elastic material having elasticity;
A micro-sampling chip configured such that a sample is sucked into the inspection space through the suction port by elastically deforming the elastic wall surface of the pump unit.   The microsampling chip has a distal end and a proximal end, the suction port is provided at the distal end, and the proximal end is held by an inspection device, and the inspection space is provided inside the proximal end. The microsampling chip according to claim 1, which is provided. The suction port and the inspection space communicate with each other through a fine channel,
The internal space of the pump unit has a volume larger than the total volume of the fine flow path and the inspection space, and a predetermined amount of the sample sucked from the suction port is introduced into the inspection space. The microsampling chip according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the microsampling chip is configured to be configured as described above.   A measurement electrode for performing electrochemical measurement of a sample is provided inside the inspection space, and when a predetermined amount of sample is stored in the inspection space, the sample and the measurement electrode The microsampling chip according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the microsampling chip is configured to contact each other.   An inspection medium including a coloring material having a property of exhibiting a coloring reaction derived from a component contained in the sample when the sample is brought into contact with the sample is provided in the inspection space. The microsampling chip according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the sample and the inspection medium come into contact with each other when a fixed sample is stored.   The wall surface on the base end side of the wall surface forming the inspection space is made of a transparent material so that the inspection apparatus holding the base end can optically detect the color tone of the inspection medium. The microsampling chip according to claim 4.   The microsampling chip according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the color former is obtained by holding a color developing reagent exhibiting a color developing reaction in accordance with a property of a sample on a paper medium.   The microsampling chip according to any one of claims 5 to 7, wherein the inspection medium includes a plurality of the color formers having different components exhibiting the color development reaction.   The microsampling chip according to any one of claims 5 to 8, wherein the inspection medium includes a reference body having no property indicating the color development reaction. A chip holding unit for holding the microsampling chip microsampling chip according to claim 3;
A terminal for making electrical contact with the measurement electrode of the microsampling chip held by the chip holding unit;
An inspection apparatus comprising: a measurement circuit that is electrically connected to the measurement electrode via the terminal and performs electrochemical measurement of a sample. A chip holder for holding the microsampling chip according to any one of claims 5 to 9,
A detection unit for optically detecting the color tone of the inspection medium of the microsampling chip held by the chip holding unit;
An inspection apparatus comprising: a measurement circuit that measures a color development reaction of a color former of the inspection medium based on a detection result by the detection unit. The detection unit includes a light receiving element for individually detecting the intensity of red, green, and blue light,
The measurement circuit is configured to digitize the intensity of each of red, green, and blue light obtained by the detection unit and detect a color tone of the inspection medium based on the numeric values. Item 12. The inspection apparatus according to Item 11.   A pressing mechanism for pressing and releasing the elastic wall surface of the pump portion of the microsampling chip so that a predetermined amount of sample is sucked from the suction port of the microsampling chip held by the chip holding unit; The inspection apparatus according to any one of claims 10 to 12, further comprising: