Flow cytometric analysis of entire microbial colonies

Droplet Microfluidics and Directed Evolution of Enzymes: An Intertwined Journey

Evolution is essential to the generation of complexity and ultimately life. It relies on the propagation of the properties, traits, and characteristics that allow an organism to survive in a challenging environment. It is evolution that shaped our world over about four billion years by slow and iterative adaptation. While natural evolution based on selection is slow and gradual, directed evolution allows the fast and streamlined optimization of a phenotype under selective conditions. The potential of directed evolution for the discovery and optimization of enzymes is mostly limited by the throughput of the tools and methods available for screening. Over the past twenty years, versatile tools based on droplet microfluidics have been developed to address the need for higher throughput. In this Review, we provide a chronological overview of the intertwined development of microfluidics droplet-based compartmentalization methods and in vivo directed evolution of enzymes.

Bacterial Microcolonies in Gel Beads for High-throughput Screening

High-throughput screening of a DNA library expressed in a bacterial population for identifying potentially rare members displaying a property of interest is a crucial step for success in many experiments such as directed evolution of proteins and synthetic circuits and deep mutational scanning to identify gain- or loss-of-function mutants. Here, I describe a protocol for high-throughput screening of bacterial (E. coli) microcolonies in gel beads. Single cells are encapsulated into monodisperse water-in-oil emulsion droplets produced with a microfluidic device. The aqueous solution also contains agarose that gelates upon cooling on ice, so that solid gel beads form inside the droplets. During incubation of the emulsion, the cells grow into monoclonal microcolonies inside the beads. After isolation of the gel beads from the emulsion and their sorting by fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS), the bacteria are recovered from the gel beads and are then ready for a further round of sorting, mutagenesis or analysis. In order to sort by FACS, this protocol requires a fluorescent readout, such as the expression of a fluorescent reporter protein. Measuring the average fluorescent signals of microcolonies reduces the influence of high phenotypic cell-to-cell variability and increases the sensitivity compared to the sorting of single cells. We applied this method to sort a pBAD promoter library at ON and OFF states (Duarte et al., 2017).

Bacterial Microcolonies in Gel Beads for High-Throughput Screening of Libraries in Synthetic Biology

Synthetic biologists increasingly rely on directed evolution to optimize engineered biological systems. Applying an appropriate screening or selection method for identifying the potentially rare library members with the desired properties is a crucial step for success in these experiments. Special challenges include substantial cell-to-cell variability and the requirement to check multiple states (e.g., being ON or OFF depending on the input). Here, we present a high-throughput screening method that addresses these challenges. First, we encapsulate single bacteria into microfluidic agarose gel beads. After incubation, they harbor monoclonal bacterial microcolonies (e.g., expressing a synthetic construct) and can be sorted according their fluorescence by fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS). We determine enrichment rates and demonstrate that we can measure the average fluorescent signals of microcolonies containing phenotypically heterogeneous cells, obviating the problem of cell-to-cell variability. Finally, we apply this method to sort a pBAD promoter library at ON and OFF states.

Quantitating secretion rates of individual cells: design of secretion assays

To observe events occurring in the microenvironment surrounding individual cells, a mathematical framework has been developed describing the behavior of a compound following its secretion by a single cell. This description is based on the diffusional and binding processes taking place in the vicinity of the cell surface. It allows prediction of the rate of capture and accumulation of a secreted compound around a single cell. This concept provides the basis for the design of two experimental assays for measuring single-cell secretion rates: (1) Cells are immobilized in hydrogel microbeads which contain capture sites for the secreted compound; and (2) artificial receptors are bound directly to the cell surface which are capable of binding molecules secreted by individual cells. This general methodology is developed in the specific case of the model organism Saccharomyces cerevisiae secreting a heterologous protein, but can be applied to any cell/secreted protein combination. Binding studies have shown that approximately 2 x 10(5) of these artificial receptors can be attached to the surface of a single yeast cell. At this surface density of a putative artificial receptor, it is predicted that single-cell secretion rates of 47 molecules/cell/sec of a 150 kDa protein can be detected. Simulations indicate that a microbead loaded with 5 x 10(6) capture antibodies will result in detection of secretion of this protein at rates as low as 4 molecules/cell/sec.

FACS-based isolation of slowly growing cells: double encapsulation of yeast in gel microdrops

Isolating hyperproducing cells is important in biotechnology, but these cells usually grow slowly and can be overgrown by poorly producing cells. We describe a new method of isolating slowly growing cells from among rapidly growing cells, which has the potential for automation and high throughput (e.g., 100,000 cells/h). A model system is presented consisting of a mixed population of slowly growing mutant and rapidly growing wild-type yeast, which were encapsulated in double agarose gel microdrops (dGMDs); with most dGMDs initially containing single cells. Double encapsulation locates parent cells near dGMD centers, making microcolony measurement more accurate. After a 15-h incubation, fluorescent activated cell sorting was used to analyze and sort dGMDs with small microcolonies (slow growers) from dGMDs with large microcolonies (rapid growers). Successful isolation of slow growers from a mixed population of predominantly rapidly growing Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells was achieved.

Present and potential diagnostic techniques in onychomycosis

The problem of onychomycosis has been frequently addressed during recent years. To make the diagnosis of onychomycosis dermatologists have relied on clinical presentation, culture, and microscopy. These approaches are hampered by false-negative and false-positive results that have confused treatment outcomes. Two new diagnostic techniques, immunohistochemistry and flow cytometry, provide an effective means of identifying different dermatophytes, yeasts, and nondermatophytic molds. Immunohistochemistry employs antibodies to certain fungi to enable positive identification in situ, whereas flow cytometry differentiates fungi on the basis of molecular differences. These techniques provide new evidence that nondermatophytic molds and yeasts can actively invade nail tissue and that mixed infections occur. These findings could have important implications for the treatment of onychomycosis.