| abstract |
The invention relates to a system and method for isolating particles from a biological fluid, including: obtaining a sample of biological fluid from a source (e.g. a patient) in which the sample contains particles of multiple sample particle types; tagging particles in the sample with tagging agents, including mixing the sample with a solution of magnetic tagging agents that selectively bind to particles of at least one of the sample particle types, thereby forming a group of tagged particles in the sample; passing the sample through a magnetic conduit having a magnetic field that interacts with at least some of the tagged particles; sorting the particles of the sample into multiple groups based on the interaction between the tagged particles and the magnetic field; and optionally returning selected portions of the processed fluid back to its source with or without the addition of appropriate therapeutic agents. |