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van der Loh M, Schiffmann M, Polack M, Wink K, Belder D. Coupling of droplet-on-demand microfluidcs with ESI/MS to study single-cell catalysis. RSC Adv 2024; 14:25337-25346. [PMID: 39139235 PMCID: PMC11320962 DOI: 10.1039/d4ra04835k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2024] [Accepted: 08/07/2024] [Indexed: 08/15/2024] Open
Abstract
Droplet microfluidics provides an efficient method for analysing reactions within the range of nanoliters to picoliters. However, the sensitive, label-free and versatile detection with ESI/MS poses some difficulties. One challenge is the difficult association of droplets with the MS signal in high-throughput droplet analysis. Hence, a droplet-on-demand system for the generation of a few droplets can address this and other problems such as surfactant concentration or cross-contamination. Accordingly, the system has been further developed for online coupling with ESI/MS. To achieve this, we developed a setup enabling on-demand droplet generation by hydrodynamic gating, with downstream microscopic droplet detection and MS analysis. This facilitated the incorporation of 1-9 yeast cells into individual 1-5 nL droplets and the monitoring of yeast-catalysed transformation from ketoester to ethyl-3-hydroxybutyrate by MS. With our method a mean production rate of 0.035 ± 0.017 fmol per cell per h was observed with a detection limit of 0.30 μM. In conclusion, our droplet-on-demand method is a versatile and advantageous tool for cell encapsulation in droplets, droplet imaging and reaction detection using ESI/MS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie van der Loh
- Institute of Analytical Chemistry, Leipzig University Linnéstraße 3 04103 Leipzig Germany
| | - Marie Schiffmann
- Institute of Analytical Chemistry, Leipzig University Linnéstraße 3 04103 Leipzig Germany
| | - Matthias Polack
- Institute of Analytical Chemistry, Leipzig University Linnéstraße 3 04103 Leipzig Germany
| | - Konstantin Wink
- Institute of Analytical Chemistry, Leipzig University Linnéstraße 3 04103 Leipzig Germany
| | - Detlev Belder
- Institute of Analytical Chemistry, Leipzig University Linnéstraße 3 04103 Leipzig Germany
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2
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Krebs F, Zagst H, Stein M, Ratih R, Minkner R, Olabi M, Hartung S, Scheller C, Lapizco-Encinas BH, Sänger-van de Griend C, García CD, Wätzig H. Strategies for capillary electrophoresis: Method development and validation for pharmaceutical and biological applications-Updated and completely revised edition. Electrophoresis 2023; 44:1279-1341. [PMID: 37537327 DOI: 10.1002/elps.202300158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2023] [Accepted: 07/19/2023] [Indexed: 08/05/2023]
Abstract
This review is in support of the development of selective, precise, fast, and validated capillary electrophoresis (CE) methods. It follows up a similar article from 1998, Wätzig H, Degenhardt M, Kunkel A. "Strategies for capillary electrophoresis: method development and validation for pharmaceutical and biological applications," pointing out which fundamentals are still valid and at the same time showing the enormous achievements in the last 25 years. The structures of both reviews are widely similar, in order to facilitate their simultaneous use. Focusing on pharmaceutical and biological applications, the successful use of CE is now demonstrated by more than 600 carefully selected references. Many of those are recent reviews; therefore, a significant overview about the field is provided. There are extra sections about sample pretreatment related to CE and microchip CE, and a completely revised section about method development for protein analytes and biomolecules in general. The general strategies for method development are summed up with regard to selectivity, efficiency, precision, analysis time, limit of detection, sample pretreatment requirements, and validation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Finja Krebs
- Institute, of Medicinal and Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Lower Saxony, Germany
| | - Holger Zagst
- Institute, of Medicinal and Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Lower Saxony, Germany
| | - Matthias Stein
- Institute, of Medicinal and Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Lower Saxony, Germany
| | - Ratih Ratih
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Surabaya, Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia
| | - Robert Minkner
- Institute, of Medicinal and Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Lower Saxony, Germany
| | - Mais Olabi
- Institute, of Medicinal and Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Lower Saxony, Germany
| | - Sophie Hartung
- Institute, of Medicinal and Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Lower Saxony, Germany
| | - Christin Scheller
- Institute, of Medicinal and Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Lower Saxony, Germany
| | - Blanca H Lapizco-Encinas
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Kate Gleason College of Engineering, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, New York, USA
| | - Cari Sänger-van de Griend
- Kantisto BV, Baarn, The Netherlands
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Uppsala Universitet, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Carlos D García
- Department of Chemistry, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina, USA
| | - Hermann Wätzig
- Institute, of Medicinal and Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Lower Saxony, Germany
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3
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A time-coded multi-concentration microfluidic chemical waveform generator for high-throughput probing suspension single-cell signaling. CHINESE CHEM LETT 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cclet.2021.09.080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
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4
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Miller A, Hill N, Hakim K, Lapizco-Encinas BH. Fine-Tuning Electrokinetic Injections Considering Nonlinear Electrokinetic Effects in Insulator-Based Devices. MICROMACHINES 2021; 12:mi12060628. [PMID: 34071691 PMCID: PMC8227112 DOI: 10.3390/mi12060628] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2021] [Revised: 05/24/2021] [Accepted: 05/25/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
The manner of sample injection is critical in microscale electrokinetic (EK) separations, as the resolution of a separation greatly depends on sample quality and how the sample is introduced into the system. There is a significant wealth of knowledge on the development of EK injection methodologies that range from simple and straightforward approaches to sophisticated schemes. The present study focused on the development of optimized EK sample injection schemes for direct current insulator-based EK (DC-iEK) systems. These are microchannels that contain arrays of insulating structures; the presence of these structures creates a nonuniform electric field distribution when a potential is applied, resulting in enhanced nonlinear EK effects. Recently, it was reported that the nonlinear EK effect of electrophoresis of the second kind plays a major role in particle migration in DC-iEK systems. This study presents a methodology for designing EK sample injection schemes that consider the nonlinear EK effects exerted on the particles being injected. Mathematical modeling with COMSOL Multiphysics was employed to identify proper voltages to be used during the EK injection process. Then, a T-microchannel with insulating posts was employed to experimentally perform EK injection and separate a sample containing two types of similar polystyrene particles. The quality of the EK injections was assessed by comparing the resolution (Rs) and number of plates (N) of the experimental particle separations. The findings of this study establish the importance of considering nonlinear EK effects when planning for successful EK injection schemes.
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5
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Guo Y, Gao Z, Liu Y, Li S, Zhu J, Chen P, Liu BF. Multichannel Synchronous Hydrodynamic Gating Coupling with Concentration Gradient Generator for High-Throughput Probing Dynamic Signaling of Single Cells. Anal Chem 2020; 92:12062-12070. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.0c02746] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Yiran Guo
- The Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics of MOE at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics-Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
| | - Zhaolong Gao
- The Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Image Processing and Intelligent Control, School of Artificial Intelligence and Automation, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
| | - Yinan Liu
- Department of Genetics, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
| | - Shunji Li
- The Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics of MOE at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics-Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
| | - Jinchi Zhu
- The Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics of MOE at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics-Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
| | - Peng Chen
- The Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics of MOE at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics-Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
| | - Bi-Feng Liu
- The Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics of MOE at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics-Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
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6
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Chen P, Li S, Guo Y, Zeng X, Liu BF. A review on microfluidics manipulation of the extracellular chemical microenvironment and its emerging application to cell analysis. Anal Chim Acta 2020; 1125:94-113. [PMID: 32674786 DOI: 10.1016/j.aca.2020.05.065] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2020] [Revised: 05/22/2020] [Accepted: 05/26/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Spatiotemporal manipulation of extracellular chemical environments with simultaneous monitoring of cellular responses plays an essential role in exploring fundamental biological processes and expands our understanding of underlying mechanisms. Despite the rapid progress and promising successes in manipulation strategies, many challenges remain due to the small size of cells and the rapid diffusion of chemical molecules. Fortunately, emerging microfluidic technology has become a powerful approach for precisely controlling the extracellular chemical microenvironment, which benefits from its integration capacity, automation, and high-throughput capability, as well as its high resolution down to submicron. Here, we summarize recent advances in microfluidics manipulation of the extracellular chemical microenvironment, including the following aspects: i) Spatial manipulation of chemical microenvironments realized by convection flow-, diffusion-, and droplet-based microfluidics, and surface chemical modification; ii) Temporal manipulation of chemical microenvironments enabled by flow switching/shifting, moving/flowing cells across laminar flows, integrated microvalves/pumps, and droplet manipulation; iii) Spatiotemporal manipulation of chemical microenvironments implemented by a coupling strategy and open-space microfluidics; and iv) High-throughput manipulation of chemical microenvironments. Finally, we briefly present typical applications of the above-mentioned technical advances in cell-based analyses including cell migration, cell signaling, cell differentiation, multicellular analysis, and drug screening. We further discuss the future improvement of microfluidics manipulation of extracellular chemical microenvironments to fulfill the needs of biological and biomedical research and applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peng Chen
- The Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics of MOE at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics-Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Shunji Li
- The Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics of MOE at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics-Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Yiran Guo
- The Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics of MOE at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics-Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Xuemei Zeng
- The Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics of MOE at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics-Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Bi-Feng Liu
- The Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics of MOE at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics-Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, China.
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7
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Chen P, Guo Y, Feng X, Yan S, Wang J, Li Y, Du W, Liu BF. Microfluidic Chemical Function Generator for Probing Dynamic Cell Signaling. Anal Chem 2017; 89:9209-9217. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.7b01967] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Peng Chen
- The Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics of MOE at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics−Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
| | - Yiran Guo
- The Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics of MOE at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics−Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
| | - Xiaojun Feng
- The Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics of MOE at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics−Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
| | - Shuangqian Yan
- The Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics of MOE at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics−Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
| | - Jie Wang
- The Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics of MOE at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics−Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
| | - Yiwei Li
- The Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics of MOE at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics−Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
| | - Wei Du
- The Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics of MOE at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics−Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
| | - Bi-Feng Liu
- The Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics of MOE at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics−Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
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8
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Xi HD, Zheng H, Guo W, Gañán-Calvo AM, Ai Y, Tsao CW, Zhou J, Li W, Huang Y, Nguyen NT, Tan SH. Active droplet sorting in microfluidics: a review. LAB ON A CHIP 2017; 17:751-771. [PMID: 28197601 DOI: 10.1039/c6lc01435f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 174] [Impact Index Per Article: 24.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
The ability to manipulate and sort droplets is a fundamental issue in droplet-based microfluidics. Various lab-on-a-chip applications can only be realized if droplets are systematically categorized and sorted. These micron-sized droplets act as ideal reactors which compartmentalize different biological and chemical reagents. Array processing of these droplets hinges on the competence of the sorting and integration into the fluidic system. Recent technological advances only allow droplets to be actively sorted at the rate of kilohertz or less. In this review, we present state-of-the-art technologies which are implemented to efficiently sort droplets. We classify the concepts according to the type of energy implemented into the system. We also discuss various key issues and provide insights into various systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heng-Dong Xi
- School of Aeronautics, Northwestern Polytechnical University, 127 West Youyi Rd., Xi'an, Shaanxi, China
| | - Hao Zheng
- School of Aeronautics, Northwestern Polytechnical University, 127 West Youyi Rd., Xi'an, Shaanxi, China
| | - Wei Guo
- School of Aeronautics, Northwestern Polytechnical University, 127 West Youyi Rd., Xi'an, Shaanxi, China and Queensland Micro- and Nanotechnology Centre, Griffith University, 170 Kessels Road, Brisbane, QLD 4111, Australia.
| | - Alfonso M Gañán-Calvo
- Depto. de Ingeniería Aeroespacial y Mecánica de Fluidos, Universidad de Sevilla, E-41092 Sevilla, Spain
| | - Ye Ai
- Pillar of Engineering Product Development, Singapore University of Technology and Design, Singapore
| | - Chia-Wen Tsao
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Central University, No. 300, Zhongda Rd, Taoyuan, Taiwan
| | - Jun Zhou
- School of Information and Communication Technology, Griffith University, Nathan, QLD 4111, Australia
| | - Weihua Li
- School of Mechanical, Materials and Mechatronic Engineering, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia
| | - Yanyi Huang
- Biodynamic Optical Imaging Center, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Nam-Trung Nguyen
- Queensland Micro- and Nanotechnology Centre, Griffith University, 170 Kessels Road, Brisbane, QLD 4111, Australia.
| | - Say Hwa Tan
- Queensland Micro- and Nanotechnology Centre, Griffith University, 170 Kessels Road, Brisbane, QLD 4111, Australia.
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9
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Li L, Li Q, Chen P, Li Z, Chen Z, Tang B. Consecutive Gated Injection-Based Microchip Electrophoresis for Simultaneous Quantitation of Superoxide Anion and Nitric Oxide in Single PC-12 Cells. Anal Chem 2015; 88:930-6. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.5b03664] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Lu Li
- College of Chemistry,
Chemical
Engineering and Materials Science, Collaborative Innovation Center
of Functionalized Probes for Chemical Imaging in Universities of Shandong,
Key Laboratory of Molecular and Nano Probes, Ministry
of Education, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, 250014, P.R. China
| | - Qingling Li
- College of Chemistry,
Chemical
Engineering and Materials Science, Collaborative Innovation Center
of Functionalized Probes for Chemical Imaging in Universities of Shandong,
Key Laboratory of Molecular and Nano Probes, Ministry
of Education, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, 250014, P.R. China
| | - Peilin Chen
- College of Chemistry,
Chemical
Engineering and Materials Science, Collaborative Innovation Center
of Functionalized Probes for Chemical Imaging in Universities of Shandong,
Key Laboratory of Molecular and Nano Probes, Ministry
of Education, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, 250014, P.R. China
| | - Zhongyi Li
- College of Chemistry,
Chemical
Engineering and Materials Science, Collaborative Innovation Center
of Functionalized Probes for Chemical Imaging in Universities of Shandong,
Key Laboratory of Molecular and Nano Probes, Ministry
of Education, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, 250014, P.R. China
| | - Zhenzhen Chen
- College of Chemistry,
Chemical
Engineering and Materials Science, Collaborative Innovation Center
of Functionalized Probes for Chemical Imaging in Universities of Shandong,
Key Laboratory of Molecular and Nano Probes, Ministry
of Education, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, 250014, P.R. China
| | - Bo Tang
- College of Chemistry,
Chemical
Engineering and Materials Science, Collaborative Innovation Center
of Functionalized Probes for Chemical Imaging in Universities of Shandong,
Key Laboratory of Molecular and Nano Probes, Ministry
of Education, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, 250014, P.R. China
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10
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A microfluidic digital single-cell assay for the evaluation of anticancer drugs. Anal Bioanal Chem 2014; 407:1139-48. [PMID: 25433683 DOI: 10.1007/s00216-014-8325-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2014] [Revised: 11/04/2014] [Accepted: 11/05/2014] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
Digital single-cell assays hold high potentials for the analysis of cell apoptosis and the evaluation of chemotherapeutic reagents for cancer therapy. In this paper, a microfluidic hydrodynamic trapping system was developed for digital single-cell assays with the capability of monitoring cellular dynamics over time. The microfluidic chip was designed with arrays of bypass structures for trapping individual cells without the need for surface modification, external electric force, or robotic equipment. After optimization of the bypass structure by both numerical simulations and experiments, a single-cell trapping efficiency of ∼90 % was achieved. We demonstrated the method as a digital single-cell assay for the evaluation of five clinically established chemotherapeutic reagents. As a result, the half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) values of these compounds could be conveniently determined. We further modeled the gradual decrease of active drugs over time which was often observed in vivo after an injection to investigate cell apoptosis against chemotherapeutic reagents. The developed method provided a valuable means for cell apoptotic analysis and evaluation of anticancer drugs.
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11
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Wu L, Chen P, Dong Y, Feng X, Liu BF. Encapsulation of single cells on a microfluidic device integrating droplet generation with fluorescence-activated droplet sorting. Biomed Microdevices 2014; 15:553-60. [PMID: 23404263 DOI: 10.1007/s10544-013-9754-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Encapsulation of single cells is a challenging task in droplet microfluidics due to the random compartmentalization of cells dictated by Poisson statistics. In this paper, a microfluidic device was developed to improve the single-cell encapsulation rate by integrating droplet generation with fluorescence-activated droplet sorting. After cells were loaded into aqueous droplets by hydrodynamic focusing, an on-flight fluorescence-activated sorting process was conducted to isolate droplets containing one cell. Encapsulation of fluorescent polystyrene beads was investigated to evaluate the developed method. A single-bead encapsulation rate of more than 98 % was achieved under the optimized conditions. Application to encapsulate single HeLa cells was further demonstrated with a single-cell encapsulation rate of 94.1 %, which is about 200 % higher than those obtained by random compartmentalization. We expect this new method to provide a useful platform for encapsulating single cells, facilitating the development of high-throughput cell-based assays.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liang Wu
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
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12
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Li Y, Xu F, Liu C, Xu Y, Feng X, Liu BF. A novel microfluidic mixer based on dual-hydrodynamic focusing for interrogating the kinetics of DNA-protein interaction. Analyst 2013; 138:4475-82. [PMID: 23785706 DOI: 10.1039/c3an00521f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
Kinetic measurement of biomacromolecular interaction plays a significant role in revealing the underlying mechanisms of cellular activities. Due to the small diffusion coefficient of biomacromolecules, it is difficult to resolve the rapid kinetic process with traditional analytical methods such as stopped-flow or laminar mixers. Here, we demonstrated a unique continuous-flow laminar mixer based on microfluidic dual-hydrodynamic focusing to characterize the kinetics of DNA-protein interactions. The time window of this mixer for kinetics observation could cover from sub-milliseconds to seconds, which made it possible to capture the folding process with a wide dynamic range. Moreover, the sample consumption was remarkably reduced to <0.55 μL min⁻¹, over 1000-fold saving in comparison to those reported previously. We further interrogated the interaction kinetics of G-quadruplex and the single-stranded DNA binding protein, indicating that this novel micromixer would be a useful approach for analyzing the interaction kinetics of biomacromolecules.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ying Li
- Britton Chance Center for Biomedical Photonics at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics-Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
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13
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Sivagnanam V, Gijs MAM. Exploring Living Multicellular Organisms, Organs, and Tissues Using Microfluidic Systems. Chem Rev 2013; 113:3214-47. [DOI: 10.1021/cr200432q] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Martin A. M. Gijs
- Laboratory
of Microsystems, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), 1015 Lausanne,
Switzerland
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14
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Chen P, Chen P, Feng X, Du W, Liu BF. Analysis of intercellular communication by flexible hydrodynamic gating on a microfluidic chip. Anal Bioanal Chem 2012; 405:307-14. [PMID: 23052886 DOI: 10.1007/s00216-012-6447-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2012] [Revised: 08/31/2012] [Accepted: 09/21/2012] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Intercellular Ca(2+) waves are propagation of Ca(2+) transients among cells that could be initiated by chemical stimulation. Current methods for analyzing intercellular Ca(2+) waves are difficult to realize localized chemical stimulations upon the target cell without interfering with adjacent contacting cells. In this paper, a simple and flexible microfluidic method was developed for investigating the intercellular communication of Ca(2+) signals. A cross-patterned microfluidic chip was designed and fabricated with polydimethylsiloxane as the structural material. Localized chemical stimulation was achieved by a new strategy based on hydrodynamic gating technique. Clusters of target cells were seeded at the location within 300 μm downstream of the intersection of the cross-shaped microchannel. Confined lateral molecular diffusion largely minimized the interference from diffusion-induced stimulation of adjacent cells. Localized stimulation of the target cell with adenosine 5'-triphosphate successfully induced the propagation of intercellular Ca(2+) waves among a population of adjacent contacting cells. Further inhibition studies verified that the propagation of calcium signals among NIH-3 T3 cells was dependent on direct cytosolic transfer via gap junctions. The developed microfluidic method provides a versatile platform for investigating the dynamics of intercellular communications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peng Chen
- Britton Chance Center for Biomedical Photonics at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics-Hubei Bioinformatics, Systems Biology Theme, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, China
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15
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Sun J, Wang J, Chen P, Feng X, Du W, Liu BF. A chemical signal generator for resolving temporal dynamics of single cells. Anal Bioanal Chem 2011; 400:2973-81. [PMID: 21499676 DOI: 10.1007/s00216-011-4987-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2011] [Revised: 04/02/2011] [Accepted: 04/05/2011] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
To investigate rapid cell signaling, analytical methods are required that can generate repeatable chemical signals for stimulating live cells with high temporal resolution. Here, we present a chemical signal generator based on hydrodynamic gating, permitting flexible stimulation of single adherent cells with a temporal resolution of 20 ms. Studies of adenosine triphosphate (ATP)-induced calcium signaling in HeLa cells were demonstrated using this developed method. Consecutive treatment of the cells with ATP pulses of 20 or 1 s led to an increase of latency, which might be another indicator of receptor desensitization in addition to the decrease in the amplitude of calcium spikes. With increasing duration of ATP pulses from milliseconds to a few seconds, the cellular responses transitioned from single calcium spikes to calcium oscillation gradually. We expected this method to open up a new avenue for potential investigation of rapid cell signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian Sun
- Britton Chance Center for Biomedical Photonics at Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics-Hubei Bioinformatics, Department of Systems Biology, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, China
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16
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Zhang X, Li Q, Chen Z, Li H, Xu K, Zhang L, Tang B. Electrokinetic gated injection-based microfluidic system for quantitative analysis of hydrogen peroxide in individual HepG2 cells. LAB ON A CHIP 2011; 11:1144-1150. [PMID: 21298131 DOI: 10.1039/c0lc00263a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
A microfluidic system to determine hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) in individual HepG2 cells based on the electrokinetic gated injection was developed for the first time. A home-synthesized fluorescent probe, bis(p-methylbenzenesulfonate)dichlorofluorescein (FS), was employed to label intracellular H(2)O(2) in the intact cells. On a simple cross microchip, multiple single-cell operations, including single cell injection, cytolysis, electrophoresis separation and detection of H(2)O(2), were automatically carried out within 60 s using the electrokinetic gated injection and laser-induced fluorescence detection (LIFD). The performance of the method was evaluated under the optimal conditions. The linear calibration curve was over a range of 4.39-610 amol (R(2)=0.9994). The detection limit was 0.55 amol or 9.0×10(-10) M (S/N=3). The relative standard deviations (RSDs, n=6) of migration time and peak area were 1.4% and 4.8%, respectively. With the use of this method, the average content of H(2)O(2) in single HepG2 cells was found to be 16.09±9.84 amol (n=15). Separation efficiencies in excess of 17,000 theoretical plates for the cells were achieved. These results demonstrated that the efficient integration and automation of these single-cell operations enabled the sensitive, reproducible, and quantitative examination of intracellular H(2)O(2) at single-cell level. Owing to the advantages of simple microchip structure, controllable single-cell manipulation and ease in building, this platform provides a universal way to automatically determine other intracellular constituents within single cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinyuan Zhang
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Key Laboratory of Molecular and Nano Probes, Engineering Research Center of Pesticide and Medicine Intermediate Clean Production, Ministry of Education, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, 250014
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Sun J, Chen P, Feng X, Du W, Liu BF. Development of a microfluidic cell-based biosensor integrating a millisecond chemical pulse generator. Biosens Bioelectron 2011; 26:3413-9. [PMID: 21334189 DOI: 10.1016/j.bios.2011.01.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2010] [Accepted: 01/10/2011] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
The use of cell-based biosensors is usually limited by agonist-induced desensitization of cell-surface receptors. In this work, a microfluidic cell-based biosensor (μCBB) was developed for the detection of ATP in liquid environments. It consists of a millisecond chemical pulse generator for sample introduction in a pulsatile manner and a single NIH-3T3 cell expressing endogenous P2Y receptors as the sensing element. ATP solutions were used to simulate input signals for investigating the μCBB. By controlling negative pressures on two outlets of a cross-shaped microfluidic chip, pulses of ATP solutions were generated based on hydrodynamic gated injection. With ATP pulses of 100 ms every 50s, the amplitude of the resulting calcium spikes maintained at a similar level, suggesting that the receptor desensitization was minimized. Consequently, the developed μCBB could be used for detecting pulsatile samples with extended use times. The sensitivity of the μCBB for detecting ATP was further determined and the cellular responses to millisecond ATP pulses were investigated in comparison to long-term stimulations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian Sun
- Britton Chance Center for Biomedical Photonics, Department of Systems Biology, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
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