Cell capture apparatus

A cell capture apparatus comprising:

• a cell separation unit having a flat plate shape;
• and
• a cell capture unit having a flat plate shape located below the cell separation unit and fixed to the cell separation unit,
• the cell separation unit comprising:
• a liquid-sample inlet port into which a liquid sample is introduced, the liquid sample containing multiple large cells, multiple small cells that are smaller than the large cells, and a sample liquid component;
• a carrier-liquid inlet port into which a carrier liquid is introduced, the carrier liquid having an electroconductivity different from an electroconductivity of the large cells;
• a cell-separation flow passage oriented horizontally in which the liquid sample from the liquid-sample inlet port and the carrier liquid from the carrier-liquid inlet port flow, the cell-separation flow passage being configured to separate a set of large cells and the carrier liquid from a set of small cells and the sample liquid component;
• a large-cell outlet port into which the set of large cells and the carrier liquid flows from the cell-separation flow passage;
• and
• a small-cell outlet port into which the set of small cells and the sample liquid component flows from the cell-separation flow passage,
• the cell capture unit comprising:
• a large-cell flow passage oriented horizontally and communicating with the large-cell outlet port of the cell separation unit, the set of large cells and the carrier liquid flowing in the large-cell flow passage;
• and
• multiple electrode wires configured to attract the large cells flowing in the large-cell flow passage by means of dielectrophoresis,
• multiple cell capturing wells formed in the large-cell flow passage, each of the multiple cell capturing wells having a size that can capture one of the large cells attracted by the electrode wires.