Single cell target gene mutation analysis by arc-edge-channel monolithic valve microfluidic cell isolation and locked nucleic acid-based PCR detection

•A method was developed to fabricate arc-edge channels (ACs) as the monolithic valve component, with the combination of isotropical etching of copper and PDMS surface modification.•This method has the advantages of printed circuit board (PCB) based photolithography and PDMS-master-mold based soft lithography: low cost, ready accessibility, simplicity, efficiency, scale-up production and functionality.•The arc-edge-channel monolithic valves (AMVs) could be used as the core components in designing microfluidic devices for parallel liquid handling and high-throughput single cell isolation.•The single cell isolation capability of the AMV-based microfluidics and the single-cell PCR assay were combined for target mutation detection at single cell level.•The mutation heterogeneity in lung cancer cells from a clinical pleural effusion sample was analyzed at single cell level.