be treatable in a developed nation are often deadly. In some cases, poor healthcare clinics have the drugs to treat a certain illness but lack the diagnostic tools to identify patients who should receive the drugs. Many researchers believe that LOC technology may be the key to powerful new diagnostic instruments. The goal of these researchers is to create microfluidic chips that will allow healthcare providers in poorly equipped clinics to perform diagnostic tests such as microbiological culture assays, immunoassays and nucleic acid assays with no laboratory support. Global challenges For the chips to be used in areas with limited resources, many challenges must be overcome. In developed nations, the most highly valued traits for diagnostic tools include speed, sensitivity, and specificity; but in countries where the healthcare infrastructure is less well developed, attributes such as ease of use and shelf life must also be considered. The reagents that come with the chip, for example, must be designed so that they remain effective for months even if the chip is not kept in a climate controlled environment. Chip designers must also keep cost, scalability, and recyclability in mind as they choose what materials and fabrication techniques to use. Examples of global LOC application One of the most prominent and well known LOC devices to reach the market is the at home pregnancy test kit, a device that utilizes paper-based microfluidics technology. Another active area of LOC research involves ways to diagnose and manage common infectious diseases caused by bacteria, eg. bacteriuria or virus, eg. influenza. A gold standard for diagnosing bacteriuria (urinary tract infections) is microbial culture. A recent study based on lab-on-a-chip technology, Digital Dipstick, miniaturised microbiological culture into a dipstick format and enabled it to be used at the point-of-care. When it comes to viral infections, HIV infections are a good example. Around 36.9 million people are infected with HIV in the world today and 59% of these people receive anti-retroviral treatment. Only 75% of people living with HIV knew their HIV status. Measuring the number of CD4+ T lymphocytes in a person's blood is an accurate way to determine if a person has HIV and to track the progress of an HIV infection . At the moment, flow cytometry is the gold standard for obtaining CD4 counts, but flow cytometry is a complicated technique that is not available in most developing areas because it requires trained technicians