UCLA engineering professor Aydogan Ozcan has developed a prototype cell phone capable of monitoring the condition of HIV and malaria patients.

LUCAS (Lensless Ultra-wide-field Cell monitoring Array), which is based on Shadow imaging technology, can also be used to test water quality in underdeveloped regions or disaster sites. The versatile mobile imaging system is currently compatible with both cell phones and webcams.

LUCAS operates by acquiring an image via a short wavelength blue light to illuminate a fluid sample, such as blood or saliva. Because red blood cells and other microparticles have a distinct diffraction pattern, or shadow image, they can be measured using a custom-developed "decision algorithm" that compares the captured shadow images to a library of training images.

While LUCAS cannot replace a microscope, it is capable of almost instantaneously identifying and counting microparticles.  

"This technology will not only have great impact in health care applications, it also has the potential to replace cytometers in research labs at a fraction of the cost," explained Ozcan. "A conventional flow-cytometer identifies cells serially, one at a time, whereas tabletop versions of LUCAS can identify thousands of cells in a second, all in parallel, with the same accuracy."  

Oczan has also designed a next-generation holographic LUCAS, which allows for the identification of minute particles such as E. Coli that could not be detected by the earlier version of the platform. X