Surface Deformation of Biocompatible Materials: Recent Advances in Biological Applications

The surface topography of substrates is a crucial factor that determines the interaction with biological materials in bioengineering research. Therefore, it is important to appropriately modify the surface topography according to the research purpose. Surface topography can be fabricated in various forms, such as wrinkles, creases, and ridges using surface deformation techniques, which can contribute to the performance enhancement of cell chips, organ chips, and biosensors. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the characteristics of soft, hard, and hybrid substrates used in the bioengineering field and the surface deformation techniques applied to the substrates. Furthermore, this review summarizes the cases of cell-based research and other applications, such as biosensor research, that utilize surface deformation techniques. In cell-based research, various studies have reported optimized cell behavior and differentiation through surface deformation, while, in the biosensor and biofilm fields, performance improvement cases due to surface deformation have been reported. Through these studies, we confirm the contribution of surface deformation techniques to the advancement of the bioengineering field. In the future, it is expected that the application of surface deformation techniques to the real-time interaction analysis between biological materials and dynamically deformable substrates will increase the utilization and importance of these techniques in various fields, including cell research and biosensors.

New horizons in developing cell lysis methods: A Review

Cell lysis is an essential step in many studies related to biology and medicine. Based on the scale and medium that cell lysis is carried out, there are three main types of the cell lysis: 1) lysis of the cells in the surrounding environment, 2) lysis of the isolated or cultured cells and 3) Single cell lysis. Conventionally, several cell lysis methods have been developed, such as freeze-thawing, bead beating, incursion in liquid nitrogen, sonication and enzymatic and chemical based approaches. In recent years, various novel technologies have been employed to develop new methods of cell lysis. The aim of studies in this field is to introduce more precise and efficient tools or to reduce the costs of cell lysis procedures. Nanostructure based lysis methods, acoustic oscillation, electrical current, irradiation, bacteria-mediated cell lysis, magnetic ionic liquids, bacteriophage genes, monolith columns, hydraulic forces and steam explosion are some examples of new developed cell lysis methods. Beside the significant advances in this field, there are still many challenges and the tools must be further improved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Towards Multiplex Molecular Diagnosis-A Review of Microfluidic Genomics Technologies

Highly sensitive and specific pathogen diagnosis is essential for correct and timely treatment of infectious diseases, especially virulent strains, in people. Point-of-care pathogen diagnosis can be a tremendous help in managing disease outbreaks as well as in routine healthcare settings. Infectious pathogens can be identified with high specificity using molecular methods. A plethora of microfluidic innovations in recent years have now made it increasingly feasible to develop portable, robust, accurate, and sensitive genomic diagnostic devices for deployment at the point of care. However, improving processing time, multiplexed detection, sensitivity and limit of detection, specificity, and ease of deployment in resource-limited settings are ongoing challenges. This review outlines recent techniques in microfluidic genomic diagnosis and devices with a focus on integrating them into a lab on a chip that will lead towards the development of multiplexed point-of-care devices of high sensitivity and specificity.

Advances in monoliths and related porous materials for microfluidics

In recent years, the use of monolithic porous polymers has seen significant growth. These materials present a highly useful support for various analytical and biochemical applications. Since their introduction, various approaches have been introduced to produce monoliths in a broad range of materials. Simple preparation has enabled their easy implementation in microchannels, extending the range of applications where microfluidics can be successfully utilized. This review summarizes progress regarding monoliths and related porous materials in the field of microfluidics between 2010 and 2015. Recent developments in monolith preparation, solid-phase extraction, separations, and catalysis are critically discussed. Finally, a brief overview of the use of these porous materials for analysis of subcellular and larger structures is given.

A novel non-releasing antibacterial poly(styrene-acrylate)/waterborne polyurethane composite containing gemini quaternary ammonium salt

Novel non-releasing antibacterial poly(styrene-acrylate)/waterborne polyurethane composites containing gemini quaternary ammonium salt were designed and preparedviaa facile blending strategy.