A whole-thermoplastic microfluidic chip with integrated on-chip micropump, bioreactor and oxygenator for cell culture applications

Controlled oxygen delivery to power tissue regeneration

Oxygen plays a crucial role in human embryogenesis, homeostasis, and tissue regeneration. Emerging engineered regenerative solutions call for novel oxygen delivery systems. To become a reality, these systems must consider physiological processes, oxygen release mechanisms and the target application. In this review, we explore the biological relevance of oxygen at both a cellular and tissue level, and the importance of its controlled delivery via engineered biomaterials and devices. Recent advances and upcoming trends in the field are also discussed with a focus on tissue-engineered constructs that could meet metabolic demands to facilitate regeneration.

Advancements in the research of finger-actuated POCT chips

Microfluidic point-of-care testing (POCT) chips are used to enable the mixing and reaction of small sample volumes, facilitating target molecule detection. Traditional methods for actuating POCT chips rely on external pumps or power supplies, which are complex and non-portable. The development of finger-actuated chips has reduced operational difficulty and improved portability, promoting the development of POCT chips. This paper reviews the significance, developments, and potential applications of finger-actuated POCT chips. Three methods for controlling the flow accuracy of finger-actuated chips are summarized: direct push, indirect control, and sample injection control method, along with their respective advantages and disadvantages. Meanwhile, a comprehensive analysis of multi-fluid driving modes is provided, categorizing them into single-push multi-driving and multi-push multi-driving modes. Furthermore, recent research breakthroughs in finger-actuated chips are thoroughly summarized, and their structures, driving, and detection methods are discussed. Finally, this paper discusses the driving performance of finger-actuated chips, the suitability of detection scenarios, and the compatibility with existing detection technologies. It also provides prospects for the future development and application of finger-actuated POCT chips.

Application of microfluidic technology based on surface-enhanced Raman scattering in cancer biomarker detection: A review

With the continuous discovery and research of predictive cancer-related biomarkers, liquid biopsy shows great potential in cancer diagnosis. Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) and microfluidic technology have received much attention among the various cancer biomarker detection methods. The former has ultrahigh detection sensitivity and can provide a unique fingerprint. In contrast, the latter has the characteristics of miniaturization and integration, which can realize accurate control of the detection samples and high-throughput detection through design. Both have the potential for point-of-care testing (POCT), and their combination (lab-on-a-chip SERS (LoC-SERS)) shows good compatibility. In this paper, the basic situation of circulating proteins, circulating tumor cells, exosomes, circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA), and microRNA (miRNA) in the diagnosis of various cancers is reviewed, and the detection research of these biomarkers by the LoC-SERS platform in recent years is described in detail. At the same time, the challenges and future development of the platform are discussed at the end of the review. Summarizing the current technology is expected to provide a reference for scholars engaged in related work and interested in this field.

Opto-microfluidic assisted synthesis of photo-protoporphyrin (pPP) conjugated to hollow gold-albumin hybrid nanoshells to enhance the efficiency of photodynamic therapy of triple negative breast cancer cells

INTRODUCTION

Protoporphyrin-IX (PpIX), a photosensitizer used in photodynamic therapy, has limitations due to its hydrophobicity, rapid photobleaching, and low absorption peak in the red region. These limitations make the use of PpIX less effective for photodynamic therapy treatments. In this study, we harnessed the power of microfluidic technology to manipulate the properties of PpIX and quickly synthesize albumin-based hybrid nanoshells with high reproducibility.

METHODS AND MATERIAL

To begin with, we designed a microfluidic chip with SolidWorksⓇ software; then the chip was fabricated in Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) material using micromilling and thermal bonding. We synthesized PpIX-loaded CTAB micelles and subsequently transformed the PpIX structure into photo-protoporphyrin (PPP,) by opto-microfluidic chip (Integrating a microfluidic chip with a light source). Simultaneously with CTAB-PPP synthesis complex, we trapped it in binding sites of bovine serum albumin (BSA). Afterward, we used the same method (without irradiating) to generate a hybrid nanostructure consisting of hollow gold nanoshells (HGN) and BSACTAB-PPP. Then, after physical characterization of nanostructures, the photodynamic effects of the agents (HGNs, CTAB-PpIX, BSA-CTABPpIX, HGN-BSA-CTAB-PpIX, CTAB-PPP, BSA-CTAB-PPP, and HGNs-BSA-CTAB-PPP) were evaluated on MDA-MB-231 and 4T1 cells and the cytotoxic properties of the therapeutic agents after treatment for 24, 48, and 72 hours were investigated using MTT assay. Finally, we analyzed the findings using GraphPad Prism 9.0 software.

RESULTS

Results revealed that the opto-microfluidic assisted synthesis of HGN-BSA-CTAB-PPP is highly efficient and reproducible, with a size of 120 nm, a zeta potential of -16 mV, and a PDI index of 0.357. Furthermore, the cell survival analysis demonstrated that the HGNBSA-CTAB-PPP hybrid nanostructure can significantly reduce the survival of MDA-MB-231 and 4T1 cancer cells at low radiation doses (< 10 J/cm2) when exposed to an incoherent light source due to its strong absorption peak at a wavelength of 670 nm.

CONCLUSION

This research indicates that developing albumin-based multidrug hybrid nanostructures using microfluidic technology could be a promising approach to design more efficient photodynamic therapy studies.

Breaking the clean room barrier: exploring low-cost alternatives for microfluidic devices

Microfluidics is an interdisciplinary field that encompasses both science and engineering, which aims to design and fabricate devices capable of manipulating extremely low volumes of fluids on a microscale level. The central objective of microfluidics is to provide high precision and accuracy while using minimal reagents and equipment. The benefits of this approach include greater control over experimental conditions, faster analysis, and improved experimental reproducibility. Microfluidic devices, also known as labs-on-a-chip (LOCs), have emerged as potential instruments for optimizing operations and decreasing costs in various of industries, including pharmaceutical, medical, food, and cosmetics. However, the high price of conventional prototypes for LOCs devices, generated in clean room facilities, has increased the demand for inexpensive alternatives. Polymers, paper, and hydrogels are some of the materials that can be utilized to create the inexpensive microfluidic devices covered in this article. In addition, we highlighted different manufacturing techniques, such as soft lithography, laser plotting, and 3D printing, that are suitable for creating LOCs. The selection of materials and fabrication techniques will depend on the specific requirements and applications of each individual LOC. This article aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the numerous alternatives for the development of low-cost LOCs to service industries such as pharmaceuticals, chemicals, food, and biomedicine.