Optogenetic brain interfaces

The brain is a large network of interconnected neurons where each cell functions as a nonlinear processing element. Unraveling the mysteries of information processing in the complex networks of the brain requires versatile neurostimulation and imaging techniques. Optogenetics is a new stimulation method which allows the activity of neurons to be modulated by light. For this purpose, the cell-types of interest are genetically targeted to produce light-sensitive proteins. Once these proteins are expressed, neural activity can be controlled by exposing the cells to light of appropriate wavelengths. Optogenetics provides a unique combination of features, including multimodal control over neural function and genetic targeting of specific cell-types. Together, these versatile features combine to a powerful experimental approach, suitable for the study of the circuitry of psychiatric and neurological disorders. The advent of optogenetics was followed by extensive research aimed to produce new lines of light-sensitive proteins and to develop new technologies: for example, to control the distribution of light inside the brain tissue or to combine optogenetics with other modalities including electrophysiology, electrocorticography, nonlinear microscopy, and functional magnetic resonance imaging. In this paper, the authors review some of the recent advances in the field of optogenetics and related technologies and provide their vision for the future of the field.

Polymer micronetworks with shape-memory as future platform to explore shape-dependent biological effects

Polymer micronetworks allowing stimuli-induced, predefined, and spatially directed shape shifts. The temperature-induced on-demand switching of shape is introduced as a function of polyester carriers. With their adjustable -switching temperature, micronetworks may serve as a model system to explore static and dynamic shape effects in biological systems.

Bioinspired polyethylene terephthalate nanocone arrays with underwater superoleophobicity and anti-bioadhesion properties

This paper presents a facile method to fabricate bioinspired polyethylene terephthalate (PET) nanocone arrays via colloidal lithography. The aspect ratio (AR) of the nanocones can be finely modulated ranging from 1 to 6 by regulating the etching time. The samples with the AR value of 6 can present underwater superoleophobicity with the underwater oil contact angle (OCA) of 171.8°. The as-prepared PET nanocone arrays perform anti-bioadhesion behavior, which inhibits the formation of the actin cytoskeleton when it used as the substrate for cell culture. Moreover, the oil wettability is temperature controlled after modifying the PET nanocone arrays with PNIPAAm film, and the oil wettability of the functionalized nanocone arrays can be transformed from the superoleophobic state with OCA about 151° to the oleophilic state with OCA about 25° reversibly. Due to the high-throughput, parallel fabrication and cost-efficiency of this method, it will be favourable for researchers to introduce oleophobic properties to various substrate and device surfaces. Due to the superoleophobicity and simple functionalizing properties, the PET nanocone arrays are very promising surfaces for anti-adhesion, self-cleaning and have potential applications in material, medical, and biological fields.

Advances in engineering of high contrast CARS imaging endoscopes

The translation of CARS imaging towards real time, high resolution, chemically selective endoscopic tissue imaging applications is limited by a lack of sensitivity in CARS scanning probes sufficiently small for incorporation into endoscopes. We have developed here a custom double clad fiber (DCF)-based CARS probe which is designed to suppress the contaminant Four-Wave-Mixing (FWM) background generated within the fiber and integrated it into a fiber based scanning probe head of a few millimeters in diameter. The DCF includes a large mode area (LMA) core as a first means of reducing FWM generation by ~3 dB compared to commercially available, step-index single mode fibers. A micro-fabricated miniature optical filter (MOF) was grown on the distal end of the DCF to block the remaining FWM background from reaching the sample. The resulting probe was used to demonstrate high contrast images of polystyrene beads in the forward-CARS configuration with > 10 dB suppression of the FWM background. In epi-CARS geometry, images exhibited lower contrast due to the leakage of MOF-reflected FWM from the fiber core. Improvements concepts for the fiber probe are proposed for high contrast epi-CARS imaging to enable endoscopic implementation in clinical tissue assessment contexts, particularly in the early detection of endoluminal cancers and in tumor margin assessment.

Construction and characterization on composite electrospinning fibers doped with iridium complex owing fluorine atoms in its auxiliary ligand

The authors synthesized a fluorine-containing Ir(III) complex Ir(PTZ)2(HFD) and the corresponding composite electrospinning fibers PVP@Ir(PTZ)2(HFD), where PTZ, HFD and PVP stood for 2-phenylbenzo[d]thiazole, 1,1,1,5,5,5-hexafluoropentane-2,4-dione and poly(vinylpyrrolidone), respectively. The molecular structure of the Ir(III) complex was confirmed by its single crystal analysis, which suggested that Ir(PTZ)2(HFD) molecules crystallized as monoclinic system with two molecules in each unit cell. Density functional theory calculation on the crystal revealed that the onset electronic transitions possessed a mixed character of metal-to-ligand-charge-transfer (MLCT) and ligand-to-ligand-charge-transfer (LLCT). Ir(PTZ)2(HFD) was then doped into electrospinning fibers so that the photophysical comparison between bulk Ir(PTZ)2(HFD) and composite samples could be performed. It was found that both face-to-face π-π attraction in crystal and the immobilization in PVP host could improve photoluminescence performance by restraining the geometric relaxation of MLCT excited state, showing emission blue shift, longer excited state lifetime and improved photostability.

Improvement of dispersion stability and optical properties of CdSe/ZnSe structured quantum dots by polymer coating

In this study, CdSe core and CdSe/ZnSe core/shell quantum dots with a narrow size distribution were synthesized in a micro-reactor. A PMMA coating applied to the surface of CdSe/ZnSe core/shell QDs to prevent degradation gave improved dispersion stability compared to the CdSe core and CdSe/ZnSe core/shell. Many previous approaches to dispersion stability have not been quantitatively assessed. The dispersion stability was confirmed by multiple light scattering measurement. Additionally, the PMMA-coated CdSe/ZnSe QDs showed greatly improved optical properties with a photoluminescence quantum yield up to 80%. This structural motif is expected to prevent the degradation of QDs.

Variation of kQclin,Qmsr (fclin,fmsr) for the small-field dosimetric parameters percentage depth dose, tissue-maximum ratio, and off-axis ratio

PURPOSE

Evaluate the ability of different dosimeters to correctly measure the dosimetric parameters percentage depth dose (PDD), tissue-maximum ratio (TMR), and off-axis ratio (OAR) in water for small fields.

METHODS

Monte Carlo (MC) simulations were used to estimate the variation of kQclin,Qmsr (fclin,fmsr) for several types of microdetectors as a function of depth and distance from the central axis for PDD, TMR, and OAR measurements. The variation of kQclin,Qmsr (fclin,fmsr) enables one to evaluate the ability of a detector to reproduce the PDD, TMR, and OAR in water and consequently determine whether it is necessary to apply correction factors. The correctness of the simulations was verified by assessing the ratios between the PDDs and OARs of 5- and 25-mm circular collimators used with a linear accelerator measured with two different types of dosimeters (the PTW 60012 diode and PTW PinPoint 31014 microchamber) and the PDDs and the OARs measured with the Exradin W1 plastic scintillator detector (PSD) and comparing those ratios with the corresponding ratios predicted by the MC simulations.

RESULTS

MC simulations reproduced results with acceptable accuracy compared to the experimental results; therefore, MC simulations can be used to successfully predict the behavior of different dosimeters in small fields. The Exradin W1 PSD was the only dosimeter that reproduced the PDDs, TMRs, and OARs in water with high accuracy. With the exception of the EDGE diode, the stereotactic diodes reproduced the PDDs and the TMRs in water with a systematic error of less than 2% at depths of up to 25 cm; however, they produced OAR values that were significantly different from those in water, especially in the tail region (lower than 20% in some cases). The microchambers could be used for PDD measurements for fields greater than those produced using a 10-mm collimator. However, with the detector stem parallel to the beam axis, the microchambers could be used for TMR measurements for all field sizes. The microchambers could not be used for OAR measurements for small fields.

CONCLUSIONS

Compared with MC simulation, the Exradin W1 PSD can reproduce the PDDs, TMRs, and OARs in water with a high degree of accuracy; thus, the correction used for converting dose is very close to unity. The stereotactic diode is a viable alternative because it shows an acceptable systematic error in the measurement of PDDs and TMRs and a significant underestimation in only the tail region of the OAR measurements, where the dose is low and differences in dose may not be therapeutically meaningful.

Microelectrophoretic investigation of the interactions between liposomal membranes formed from a phosphatidylcholine-phosphatidylglycerol mixture and monovalent ions

In this paper, we characterized the interactions between two-component liposomal membranes and monovalent electrolyte ions. Liposomes were formed from neutral (phosphatidylcholine) and anionic (phosphatidylglycerol) lipids mixed in various ratios. Microelectrophoresis was used to determine the dependence of the membrane surface charge density on the p H of the electrolyte solution. Changes in the membrane electric charge caused by the adsorption of Na(+), Cl(-), H(+), and OH(-) ions were observed, and the equilibria among these ions and the phosphatidylcholine-phosphatidylglycerol membrane surface were quantified. We proposed a mathematical model for characterizing these equilibria. Using this model, together with experimental data of the membrane surface charge density, we determined association constants characterizing the equilibria. Knowledge of these parameters was necessary to calculate the theoretical curves of the model. We validated the model by curve-fitting the experimental data points to simulated data generated by the model.

Drying by cavitation and poroelastic relaxations in porous media with macroscopic pores connected by nanoscale throats

We investigate the drying dynamics of porous media with two pore diameters separated by several orders of magnitude. Nanometer-sized pores at the edge of our samples prevent air entry, while drying proceeds by heterogeneous nucleation of vapor bubbles--cavitation--in the liquid in micrometer-sized voids within the sample. We show that the dynamics of cavitation and drying are set by the interplay of the deterministic poroelastic mass transport in the porous medium and the stochastic nucleation process. Spatiotemporal patterns emerge in this unusual reaction-diffusion system, with temporal oscillations in the drying rate and variable roughness of the drying front.

Micro- and nanorobots swimming in heterogeneous liquids

Essentially all experimental investigations of swimming micro- and nanorobots have focused on swimming in homogeneous Newtonian liquids. In this issue of ACS Nano, Schamel et al. investigate the actuation of "nanopropellers" in a viscoelastic biological gel that illustrates the importance of the size of the nanostructure relative to the gel mesh size. In this Perspective, we shed further light on the swimming performance of larger microrobots swimming in heterogeneous liquids. One of the interesting results of our work is that earlier findings on the swimming performance of motile bacteria in heterogeneous liquids agree, in principle, with our results. We also discuss future research directions that should be pursued in this fascinating interdisciplinary field.

Ultrasensitive refractive index sensor based on a Mach-Zehnder interferometer created in twin-core fiber

We proposed and experimentally demonstrated a twin-core fiber (TCF)-based Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) to develop an ultrasensitive refractive index (RI) sensor. This fiber MZI was constructed by splicing a short section of TCF between two sections of single mode fibers. A microchannel was drilled through one core of the TCF by means of femtosecond laser micromachining to create one arm of the proposed interferometer, and the other core worked as the second arm. Such a fiber interferometer exhibits an ultrahigh RI sensitivity of -10981  nm/RIU and a low temperature cross-sensitivity of 3.96×10(-6)  RIU/°C. Moreover, the ultra-compact device size and all-fiber configuration make it very suitable for highly sensitive RI sensing at precise location.

Microcavity substrates casted from self-assembled microsphere monolayers for spheroid cell culture

Multicellular spheroids are an important 3-dimensional cell culture model that reflects many key aspects of in vivo microenvironments. This paper presents a scalable, self-assembly based approach for fabricating microcavity substrates for multicellular spheroid cell culture. Hydrophobic glass microbeads were self-assembled into a tightly packed monolayer through the combined actions of surface tension, gravity, and lateral capillary forces at the water-air interface of a polymer solution. The packed bead monolayer was subsequently embedded in the dried polymer layer. The surface was used as a template for replicating microcavity substrates with perfect spherical shapes. We demonstrated the use of the substrate in monitoring the formation process of tumor spheroids, a proof-of-concept scale-up fabrication procedure into standard microplate formats, and its application in testing cancer drug responses in the context of bone marrow stromal cells. The presented technique offers a simple and effective way of forming high-density uniformly-sized spheroids without microfabrication equipment for biological and drug screening applications.

Planar microdevices enhance transport of large molecular weight molecules across retinal pigment epithelial cells

Large molecular weight drug delivery to the posterior eye is challenging due to cellular barriers that hinder drug transport. Understanding how to enhance transport across the retinal barrier is important for the design of new drug delivery systems. A novel mechanism to enhance drug transport is the use of geometric properties, which has not been extensively explored in the retina. Planar SU-8/Poly(ethyleneglycol)dimethacrylate microdevices were constructed using photolithography to deliver FITC dextran across an in vitro retinal model. The model consists of retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells grown to confluence on transwell inserts, which provides an environment to investigate the influence of geometry on paracellular and transcellular delivery of encapsulated large molecules. Planar microdevices enhanced transport of large molecular weight dextrans across different models of RPE in a size dependent fashion. Increased drug permeation across the RPE was observed with the addition of microdevices as compared to a traditional bolus of FITC dextran. This phenomena was initiated by a non-toxic interaction between the microdevices and the retinal tight junction proteins. Suggesting that increased drug transport occurs via a paracellular pathway. These experiments provide evidence to support the future use of planar unidirectional microdevices for delivery of biologics in ocular applications.

Discrete microstructural cues for the attenuation of fibrosis following myocardial infarction

Chronic fibrosis caused by acute myocardial infarction (MI) leads to increased morbidity and mortality due to cardiac dysfunction. We have developed a therapeutic materials strategy that aims to mitigate myocardial fibrosis by utilizing injectable polymeric microstructures to mechanically alter the microenvironment. Polymeric microstructures were fabricated using photolithographic techniques and studied in a three-dimensional culture model of the fibrotic environment and by direct injection into the infarct zone of adult rats. Here, we show dose-dependent down-regulation of expression of genes associated with the mechanical fibrotic response in the presence of microstructures. Injection of this microstructured material into the infarct zone decreased levels of collagen and TGF-β, increased elastin deposition and vascularization in the infarcted region, and improved functional outcomes after six weeks. Our results demonstrate the efficacy of these discrete anti-fibrotic microstructures and suggest a potential therapeutic materials approach for combatting pathologic fibrosis.

Electrical detection of nucleic acid amplification using an on-chip quasi-reference electrode and a PVC REFET

Electrical detection of nucleic acid amplification through pH changes associated with nucleotide addition enables miniaturization, greater portability of testing apparatus, and reduced costs. However, current ion-sensitive field effect transistor methods for sensing nucleic acid amplification rely on establishing the fluid gate potential with a bulky, difficult to microfabricate reference electrode that limits the potential for massively parallel reaction detection. Here we demonstrate a novel method of utilizing a microfabricated solid-state quasi-reference electrode (QRE) paired with a pH-insensitive reference field effect transistor (REFET) for detection of real-time pH changes. The end result is a 0.18 μm, silicon-on-insulator, foundry-fabricated sensor that utilizes a platinum QRE to establish a pH-sensitive fluid gate potential and a PVC membrane REFET to enable pH detection of loop mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP). This technique is highly amendable to commercial scale-up, reduces the packaging and fabrication requirements for ISFET pH detection, and enables massively parallel droplet interrogation for applications, such as monitoring reaction progression in digital PCR.

Fabrication of a multifunctional nano-in-micro drug delivery platform by microfluidic templated encapsulation of porous silicon in polymer matrix

A multifunctional nano-in-micro drug delivery platform is developed by conjugating the porous silicon nanoparticles with mucoadhesive polymers and subsequent encapsulation into a pH-responsive polymer using microfluidics. The multistage platform shows monodisperse size distribution and pH-responsive payload release, and the released nanoparticles are mucoadhesive. Moreover, this platform is capable of simultaneously loading and releasing multidrugs with distinct properties.

Amplified spontaneous emission via the coupling between Fabry-Perot cavity and surface plasmon polariton modes

We demonstrated amplified spontaneous emission by embedding dye molecules within a dielectric layer of a metal-dielectric-metal subwavelength structure. It was reinforced when a strong coupling occurred between the Fabry-Perot mode supported by the dielectric layer and the surface plasmon polariton mode supported by the adjacent metallic grating. Here, we adjust the two mode interaction via tuning the depth of the metallic grating grooves. The stronger the interaction, the smaller the full width at half-maximum of the emission spectra and the lower the threshold of the amplified spontaneous emission.

Photo-crosslinkable PEG-based microribbons for forming 3D macroporous scaffolds with decoupled niche properties

PEG-based microribbons are designed and fabricated as building blocks for constructing a 3D cell niche with independently tunable biochemical, mechanical, and topographical cues. This platform supports direct cell encapsulation, allows spatial patterning of biochemical cues, and may provide a valuable tool for facilitating the analyses of how interactive niche signaling regulates cell fate in three dimensions.

Silk-molded flexible, ultrasensitive, and highly stable electronic skin for monitoring human physiological signals

Flexible and transparent E-skin devices are achieved by combining silk-molded micro-patterned polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) with single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) ultrathin films. The E-skin sensing device demonstrates superior sensitivity, a very low detectable pressure limit, a fast response time, and a high stability for the detection of superslight pressures, which may broaden their potential use as cost-effective wearable electronics for healthcare applications.

Silk-molded flexible, ultrasensitive, and highly stable electronic skin for monitoring human physiological signals

Flexible and transparent E-skin devices are achieved by combining silk-molded micro-patterned polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) with single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) ultrathin films. The E-skin sensing device demonstrates superior sensitivity, a very low detectable pressure limit, a fast response time, and a high stability for the detection of superslight pressures, which may broaden their potential use as cost-effective wearable electronics for healthcare applications.

Comparison of microfabricated hexagonal and lamellar post arrays for DNA electrophoresis

We used Brownian dynamics simulations to compare DNA separations in microfabricated post arrays containing either hexagonal or lamellar lattices. Contrary to intuition, dense hexagonal arrays with frequent DNA post collisions do not yield the optimal separation. Rather, hexagonal arrays with pore sizes commensurate with the radius of gyration of the DNA lead to increased separation resolution due to a molecular weight dependent collision probability that increases with molecular weight. However, when the hexagonal array is too sparse, this advantage is lost due to the low number of collisions. Lamellar lattices, such as the DNA nanofence, appear to be superior to a hexagonal array at the same post density, since the lamellar lattice combines regions for DNA relaxation with locally dense post regions for collisions. The relative advantages of different post arrays designs are explained in terms of the statistics for the number of collisions and the holdup time, providing guidelines for designing post arrays for separating long DNA.

Substrates with patterned extracellular matrix and subcellular stiffness gradients reveal local biomechanical responses

A substrate fabrication process is developed to pattern both the extracellular matrix (ECM) and rigidity at sub-cellular spatial resolution. When growing cells on these substrates, it is found that cells respond locally in their cytoskeleton assembly. The presented method allows unique insight into the biological interpretation of mechanical signals, whereas photolithography-based fabrication is amenable to integration with complex microfabricated substructures.

Cell force measurements in 3D microfabricated environments based on compliant cantilevers

We report the fabrication, functionalization and testing of microdevices for cell culture and cell traction force measurements in three-dimensions (3D). The devices are composed of bent cantilevers patterned with cell-adhesive spots not lying on the same plane, and thus suspending cells in 3D. The cantilevers are soft enough to undergo micrometric deflections when cells pull on them, allowing cell forces to be measured by means of optical microscopy. Since individual cantilevers are mechanically independent of each other, cell traction forces are determined directly from cantilever deflections. This proves the potential of these new devices as a tool for the quantification of cell mechanics in a system with well-defined 3D geometry and mechanical properties.

The quest for stiff, strong and tough hybrid materials: an exhaustive exploration

How to arrange soft materials with strong but brittle reinforcements to achieve attractive combinations of stiffness, strength and toughness is an ongoing and fascinating question in engineering and biological materials science. Recent advances in topology optimization and bioinspiration have brought interesting answers to this question, but they provide only small windows into the vast design space associated with this problem. Here, we take a more global approach in which we assess the mechanical performance of thousands of possible microstructures. This exhaustive exploration gives a global picture of structure-property relationships and guarantees that global optima can be found. Landscapes of optimum solutions for different combinations of desired properties can also be created, revealing the robustness of each of the solutions. Interestingly, while some of the major hybrid designs used in engineering are absent from the set of solutions, the microstructures emerging from this process are reminiscent of materials, such as bone, nacre or spider silk.

Thin polymer brush decouples biomaterial's micro-/nanotopology and stem cell adhesion

Surface morphology and chemistry of polymers used as biomaterials, such as tissue engineering scaffolds, have a strong influence on the adhesion and behavior of human mesenchymal stem cells. Here we studied semicrystalline poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) substrate scaffolds, which exhibited a variation of surface morphologies and roughness originating from different spherulitic superstructures. Substrates were obtained by varying the parameters of the thermal processing, that is, crystallization conditions. The cells attached to these polymer substrates adopted different morphologies responding to variations in spherulite density and size. In order to decouple substrate topology effects on the cells, sub-100 nm bioadhesive polymer brush coatings of oligo(ethylene glycol) methacrylates were grafted from PCL and functionalized with fibronectin. On surfaces featuring different surface textures, dense and sub-100 nm thick brush coatings determined the response of cells, irrespective to the underlying topology. Thus, polymer brushes decouple substrate micro-/nanoscale surface topology and the adhesion of stem cells.