One Drop to Save a Life: Newborn Immune Profiling Goes Micro

BusinessToday

28-05-2025

(L to R) Dr Genevieve Llanora, Department of Neonatology, KKH; Dr Kerwin Kwek, Research Scientist, SMART CAMP and SMART AMR, holding BLIPI with Assistant Professor Yeo Kee Thai, Senior Consultant, Department of Neonatology, KKH; and Nicholas Ng, Research Engineer, SMART CAMP.
A single drop of blood is now enough to provide crucial insights into a newborn's immune system, thanks to a breakthrough device developed by researchers from the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART) and KK Women's and Children's Hospital (KKH).
The BiophysicaL Immune Profiling for Infants (BLIPI) delivers results in under 15 minutes, offering a step forward in the early detection of life-threatening conditions in vulnerable newborns.
Premature infants are particularly at risk of serious illnesses such as sepsis and necrotising enterocolitis (NEC). Sepsis, a bloodstream infection, remains a leading cause of infant mortality worldwide, responsible for up to one million deaths each year. NEC, a severe intestinal disease, can be fatal in up to half of affected low birth weight infants. Diagnosis is often difficult, as symptoms are vague and can escalate quickly, making prompt intervention critical.
Current diagnostic methods typically require blood samples of up to 1 ml — a significant volume for newborns, especially those born very prematurely with total blood volumes as low as 50 ml. These methods are slow and invasive, often taking hours or even days to yield results. This delay can hinder timely clinical decisions and increase the risk of complications such as anaemia from repeated blood draws.
BLIPI addresses these challenges by requiring just 0.05 ml of blood — approximately 20 times less than traditional tests — and producing results at the point of care within 15 minutes. This enables faster, more targeted treatment while reducing the physical burden on fragile infants.
(L to R): Assistant Professor Yeo Kee Thai, Senior Consultant, and Dr Genevieve Llanora from the Department of Neonatology at KKH, demonstrating how BLIPI works.
In a study published in Pediatric Research, the team demonstrated how BLIPI uses microfluidic technology to detect changes in immune cell size and flexibility, key indicators of immune activity. Unlike conventional tests that focus on identifying pathogens, BLIPI provides direct information about how the immune system responds. Its results strongly align with established inflammatory markers such as C-reactive protein (CRP), white blood cell counts, and neutrophil ratios.
The study involved screening 19 infants — both full-term and preterm — at multiple time points. BLIPI detected differences in immune cell characteristics and successfully identified a significant immune response in a premature infant with a severe blood infection.
The device's portable design allows it to be used directly in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs), eliminating the need to send samples to a laboratory. This makes it especially valuable in rural or resource-limited healthcare settings. Requiring only a single drop of blood, BLIPI is less invasive and better suited for repeated use in ongoing monitoring.
Dr Kerwin Kwek, Research Scientist at SMART CAMP and SMART AMR, explained that BLIPI was designed to meet the specific challenges of neonatal care by combining minimal blood requirements with high sensitivity and rapid turnaround. He noted that the device offers clinicians fast, actionable insights using a non-invasive method — a meaningful advance for critical care in newborns.
Assistant Professor Yeo Kee Thai, Senior Consultant at the Department of Neonatology at KKH and senior author of the study, added: 'KKH cares for around two-thirds of all babies born weighing under 1,500 grams in Singapore. These infants have immature immune systems and are extremely vulnerable. With BLIPI, a simple heel or finger prick can quickly provide valuable immune data, enabling more precise and timely care.'
Looking ahead, the team plans to conduct larger clinical trials to validate BLIPI's accuracy across a broader range of neonatal patients and refine the device for wider clinical use. There is also potential for the technology to support pharmaceutical research, allowing real-time monitoring of immune responses to neonatal treatments.
(L to R) Nicholas Ng, Research Engineer, SMART CAMP; Assistant Professor Yeo Kee Thai, Senior Consultant, Department of Neonatology, KKH, holding BLIPI with Dr Kerwin Kwek, Research Scientist, SMART CAMP and SMART AMR; and Dr Genevieve Llanora, Department of Neonatology, KKH. Related