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Hu S, Wang Y, Wang Y, Chen X, Tong R. Dielectrophoretic separation and purification: From colloid and biological particles to droplets. J Chromatogr A 2024; 1731:465155. [PMID: 39032216 DOI: 10.1016/j.chroma.2024.465155] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2024] [Revised: 07/06/2024] [Accepted: 07/08/2024] [Indexed: 07/22/2024]
Abstract
It is indispensable to realize the high level of purification and separation, so that objective particles, such as malignant cells, harmful bacteria, and special proteins or biological molecules, could satisfy the high precise measurement in the pharmaceutical analysis, clinical diagnosis, targeted therapy, and food defense. In addition, this could reveal the intrinsic nature and evolution mechanisms of individual biological variations. Consequently, many techniques related to optical tweezers, microfluidics, acoustophoresis, and electrokinetics can be broadly used to achieve micro- and nano-scale particle separations. Dielectrophoresis (DEP) has been used for various manipulation, concentration, transport, and separation processes of biological particles owing to its early development, mature theory, low cost, and high throughput. Although numerous reviews have discussed the biological applications of DEP techniques, comprehensive descriptions of micro- and nano-scale particle separations feature less frequently in the literature. Therefore, this review summarizes the current state of particle separation attention to relevant technological developments and innovation, including theoretical simulation, microchannel structure, electrode material, pattern and its layout. Moreover, a brief overview of separation applications using DEP in combination with other technologies is also provided. Finally, conclusions, future guidelines, and suggestions for potential promotion are highlighted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sheng Hu
- College of Information Science and Engineering, Northeastern University, Shenyang, China; Hebei Key Laboratory of Micro-Nano Precision Optical Sensing and Measurement Technology, Qinhuangdao, 066004, China.
| | - Yangcheng Wang
- College of Information Science and Engineering, Northeastern University, Shenyang, China
| | - Yanzhe Wang
- Hebei Key Laboratory of Micro-Nano Precision Optical Sensing and Measurement Technology, Qinhuangdao, 066004, China
| | - Xiaoming Chen
- College of Information Science and Engineering, Northeastern University, Shenyang, China; Hebei Key Laboratory of Micro-Nano Precision Optical Sensing and Measurement Technology, Qinhuangdao, 066004, China
| | - Ruijie Tong
- College of Information Science and Engineering, Northeastern University, Shenyang, China; Hebei Key Laboratory of Micro-Nano Precision Optical Sensing and Measurement Technology, Qinhuangdao, 066004, China
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2
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Zhao H, Zhang Y, Hua D. A Review of Research Progress in Microfluidic Bioseparation and Bioassay. MICROMACHINES 2024; 15:893. [PMID: 39064404 PMCID: PMC11278910 DOI: 10.3390/mi15070893] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2024] [Revised: 07/03/2024] [Accepted: 07/05/2024] [Indexed: 07/28/2024]
Abstract
With the rapid development of biotechnology, the importance of microfluidic bioseparation and bioassay in biomedicine, clinical diagnosis, and other fields has become increasingly prominent. Microfluidic technology, with its significant advantages of high throughput, automated operation, and low sample consumption, has brought new breakthroughs in the field of biological separation and bioassay. In this paper, the latest research progress in microfluidic technology in the field of bioseparation and bioassay is reviewed. Then, we focus on the methods of bioseparation including active separation, passive separation, and hybrid separation. At the same time, the latest research results of our group in particle separation are introduced. Finally, some application examples or methods for bioassay after particle separation are listed, and the current challenges and future prospects of bioseparation and bioassay are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Dengxin Hua
- Center for Lidar Remote Sensing Research, School of Mechanical and Precision Instrument Engineering, Xi’an University of Technology, Xi’an 710048, China.; (H.Z.); (Y.Z.)
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3
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Chai H, Zhu J, Feng Y, Liang F, Wu Q, Ju Z, Huang L, Wang W. Capillarity Enabled Large-Array Liquid Metal Electrodes for Compact and High-Throughput Dielectrophoretic Microfluidics. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2024; 36:e2310212. [PMID: 38236647 DOI: 10.1002/adma.202310212] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2023] [Revised: 12/30/2023] [Indexed: 01/30/2024]
Abstract
Dielectrophoresis (DEP) particle separation has label-free, well-controllable, and low-damage merits. Sidewall microelectrodes made of liquid metal alloy (LMA) inherits the additional advantage of thick electrodes to generate impactful DEP force. However, existing LMA electrode-based devices lack the ability to integrate large-array electrodes in a compact footprint, severely limiting flow rate and thus throughput. Herein, a facile and versatile method is proposed to integrate high-density thick LMA electrodes in microfluidic devices, taking advantage of the passive control ability of capillary burst valves (CBVs). CBVs with carefully designed burst pressures are co-designed in microfluidic channels, allowing self-assembly of LMA electrode array through simple hand-push injection. The arrayed electrode configuration brings the accumulative DEP deflection effect. Specifically, The fabricated 5000 pairs of sidewall electrodes in a compact chip are demonstrted to achieve ten times higher throughput in DEP deflection. The 5000-electrode-pair device is applied to successfully separate four mixed samples, including human peripheral blood mononuclear cells and A549 cells with the flow rate of 70 µL min-1. It is envisioned that this work can greatly facilitate LMA electrode array fabrication and offer a robust and versatile platform for DEP separation applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huichao Chai
- State Key Laboratory of Precision Measurement Technology and Instrument, Department of Precision Instrument, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, P. R. China
| | - Junwen Zhu
- State Key Laboratory of Precision Measurement Technology and Instrument, Department of Precision Instrument, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, P. R. China
| | - Yongxiang Feng
- State Key Laboratory of Precision Measurement Technology and Instrument, Department of Precision Instrument, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, P. R. China
| | - Fei Liang
- State Key Laboratory of Precision Measurement Technology and Instrument, Department of Precision Instrument, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, P. R. China
| | - Qiyan Wu
- The First Medical Center of PLA General Hospital, Beijing, 100853, P. R. China
| | - Zhongjian Ju
- The First Medical Center of PLA General Hospital, Beijing, 100853, P. R. China
| | - Liang Huang
- School of Instrument Science and Opto-Electronics Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei, 230009, P. R. China
| | - Wenhui Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Precision Measurement Technology and Instrument, Department of Precision Instrument, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, P. R. China
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4
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Rane A, Jarmoshti J, Siddique AB, Adair S, Torres-Castro K, Honrado C, Bauer TW, Swami NS. Dielectrophoretic enrichment of live chemo-resistant circulating-like pancreatic cancer cells from media of drug-treated adherent cultures of solid tumors. LAB ON A CHIP 2024; 24:561-571. [PMID: 38174422 PMCID: PMC10826460 DOI: 10.1039/d3lc00804e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2023] [Accepted: 12/19/2023] [Indexed: 01/05/2024]
Abstract
Due to low numbers of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in liquid biopsies, there is much interest in enrichment of alternative circulating-like mesenchymal cancer cell subpopulations from in vitro tumor cultures for utilization within molecular profiling and drug screening. Viable cancer cells that are released into the media of drug-treated adherent cancer cell cultures exhibit anoikis resistance or anchorage-independent survival away from their extracellular matrix with nutrient sources and waste sinks, which serves as a pre-requisite for metastasis. The enrichment of these cell subpopulations from tumor cultures can potentially serve as an in vitro source of circulating-like cancer cells with greater potential for scale-up in comparison with CTCs. However, these live circulating-like cancer cell subpopulations exhibit size overlaps with necrotic and apoptotic cells in the culture media, which makes it challenging to selectively enrich them, while maintaining them in their suspended state. We present optimization of a flowthrough high frequency (1 MHz) positive dielectrophoresis (pDEP) device with sequential 3D field non-uniformities that enables enrichment of the live chemo-resistant circulating cancer cell subpopulation from an in vitro culture of metastatic patient-derived pancreatic tumor cells. Central to this strategy is the utilization of single-cell impedance cytometry with gates set by supervised machine learning, to optimize the frequency for pDEP, so that live circulating cells are selected based on multiple biophysical metrics, including membrane physiology, cytoplasmic conductivity and cell size, which is not possible using deterministic lateral displacement that is solely based on cell size. Using typical drug-treated samples with low levels of live circulating cells (<3%), we present pDEP enrichment of the target subpopulation to ∼44% levels within 20 minutes, while rejecting >90% of dead cells. This strategy of utilizing single-cell impedance cytometry to guide the optimization of dielectrophoresis has implications for other complex biological samples.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aditya Rane
- Chemistry, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, USA.
| | - Javad Jarmoshti
- Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, USA
| | | | - Sara Adair
- Surgery, School of Medicine, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, USA
| | | | - Carlos Honrado
- International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, Braga, Portugal
| | - Todd W Bauer
- Surgery, School of Medicine, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, USA
| | - Nathan S Swami
- Chemistry, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, USA.
- Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, USA
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Torres-Castro K, Acuña-Umaña K, Lesser-Rojas L, Reyes DR. Microfluidic Blood Separation: Key Technologies and Critical Figures of Merit. MICROMACHINES 2023; 14:2117. [PMID: 38004974 PMCID: PMC10672873 DOI: 10.3390/mi14112117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2023] [Revised: 11/01/2023] [Accepted: 11/10/2023] [Indexed: 11/26/2023]
Abstract
Blood is a complex sample comprised mostly of plasma, red blood cells (RBCs), and other cells whose concentrations correlate to physiological or pathological health conditions. There are also many blood-circulating biomarkers, such as circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and various pathogens, that can be used as measurands to diagnose certain diseases. Microfluidic devices are attractive analytical tools for separating blood components in point-of-care (POC) applications. These platforms have the potential advantage of, among other features, being compact and portable. These features can eventually be exploited in clinics and rapid tests performed in households and low-income scenarios. Microfluidic systems have the added benefit of only needing small volumes of blood drawn from patients (from nanoliters to milliliters) while integrating (within the devices) the steps required before detecting analytes. Hence, these systems will reduce the associated costs of purifying blood components of interest (e.g., specific groups of cells or blood biomarkers) for studying and quantifying collected blood fractions. The microfluidic blood separation field has grown since the 2000s, and important advances have been reported in the last few years. Nonetheless, real POC microfluidic blood separation platforms are still elusive. A widespread consensus on what key figures of merit should be reported to assess the quality and yield of these platforms has not been achieved. Knowing what parameters should be reported for microfluidic blood separations will help achieve that consensus and establish a clear road map to promote further commercialization of these devices and attain real POC applications. This review provides an overview of the separation techniques currently used to separate blood components for higher throughput separations (number of cells or particles per minute). We present a summary of the critical parameters that should be considered when designing such devices and the figures of merit that should be explicitly reported when presenting a device's separation capabilities. Ultimately, reporting the relevant figures of merit will benefit this growing community and help pave the road toward commercialization of these microfluidic systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karina Torres-Castro
- Biophysical and Biomedical Measurements Group, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), 100 Bureau Drive, Gaithersburg, MD 20899, USA;
- Theiss Research, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Katherine Acuña-Umaña
- Medical Devices Master’s Program, Instituto Tecnológico de Costa Rica (ITCR), Cartago 30101, Costa Rica
| | - Leonardo Lesser-Rojas
- Research Center in Atomic, Nuclear and Molecular Sciences (CICANUM), San José 11501, Costa Rica;
- School of Physics, Universidad de Costa Rica (UCR), San José 11501, Costa Rica
| | - Darwin R. Reyes
- Biophysical and Biomedical Measurements Group, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), 100 Bureau Drive, Gaithersburg, MD 20899, USA;
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Salahi A, Honrado C, Moore J, Adair S, Bauer TW, Swami NS. Supervised learning on impedance cytometry data for label-free biophysical distinction of pancreatic cancer cells versus their associated fibroblasts under gemcitabine treatment. Biosens Bioelectron 2023; 231:115262. [PMID: 37058962 PMCID: PMC10134450 DOI: 10.1016/j.bios.2023.115262] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2022] [Revised: 02/14/2023] [Accepted: 03/23/2023] [Indexed: 04/03/2023]
Abstract
Chemotherapy failure in pancreatic cancer patients is widely attributed to cancer cell reprogramming towards drug resistance by cancer associated fibroblasts (CAFs), which are the abundant cell type in the tumor microenvironment. Association of drug resistance to specific cancer cell phenotypes within multicellular tumors can advance isolation protocols for enabling cell-type specific gene expression markers to identify drug resistance. This requires the distinction of drug resistant cancer cells versus CAFs, which is challenging since permeabilization of CAF cells during drug treatment can cause non-specific uptake of cancer cell-specific stains. Cellular biophysical metrics, on the other hand, can provide multiparametric information to assess the gradual alteration of target cancer cells towards drug resistance, but these phenotypes need to be distinguished versus CAFs. Using pancreatic cancer cells and CAFs from a metastatic patient-derived tumor that exhibits cancer cell drug resistance under CAF co-culture, the biophysical metrics from multifrequency single-cell impedance cytometry are utilized for distinction of the subpopulation of viable cancer cells versus CAFs, before and after gemcitabine treatment. This is accomplished through supervised machine learning after training the model using key impedance metrics for cancer cells and CAFs from transwell co-cultures, so that an optimized classifier model can recognize each cell type and predict their respective proportions in multicellular tumor samples, before and after gemcitabine treatment, as validated by their confusion matrix and flow cytometry assays. In this manner, an aggregate of the distinguishing biophysical metrics of viable cancer cells after gemcitabine treatment in co-cultures with CAFs can be used in longitudinal studies, to classify and isolate the drug resistant subpopulation for identifying markers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Armita Salahi
- Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, 22904, USA
| | - Carlos Honrado
- Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, 22904, USA.
| | - John Moore
- Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, 22904, USA
| | - Sara Adair
- Surgery, School of Medicine, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, USA
| | - Todd W Bauer
- Surgery, School of Medicine, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, USA
| | - Nathan S Swami
- Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, 22904, USA; Chemistry, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, USA.
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Huang C, Han SI, Zhang H, Han A. Tutorial on Lateral Dielectrophoretic Manipulations in Microfluidic Systems. IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON BIOMEDICAL CIRCUITS AND SYSTEMS 2023; 17:21-32. [PMID: 37015136 PMCID: PMC10091972 DOI: 10.1109/tbcas.2022.3226675] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
Microfluidic lab-on-a-chip systems can offer cost- and time-efficient biological assays by providing high-throughput analysis at very small volume scale. Among these extremely broad ranges of assays, accurate and specific cell and reagent control is considered one of the most important functions. Dielectrophoretic (DEP)-based manipulation technologies have been extensively developed for these purposes due to their label-free and high selectivity natures as well as due to their simple microstructures. Here, we provide a tutorial on how to develop DEP-based microfluidic systems, including a detailed walkthrough of dielectrophoresis theory, instruction on how to conduct simulation and calculation of electric field and generated DEP force, followed with guidance on microfabricating two forms of DEP microfluidic systems, namely lateral DEP and droplet DEP, and how best to conduct experiments in such systems. Finally, we summarize most recent DEP-based microfluidic technologies and applications, including systems for blood diagnoses, pathogenicity studies, in-droplet content manipulations, droplet manipulations and merging, to name a few. We conclude by suggesting possible future directions on how DEP-based technologies can be utilized to overcome current challenges and improve the current status in microfluidic lab-on-a-chip systems.
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8
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Impact of buffer composition on biochemical, morphological and mechanical parameters: A tare before dielectrophoretic cell separation and isolation. Transl Oncol 2022; 28:101599. [PMID: 36516639 PMCID: PMC9764254 DOI: 10.1016/j.tranon.2022.101599] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2022] [Revised: 10/27/2022] [Accepted: 11/30/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Dielectrophoresis (DEP) represents an electrokinetic approach for discriminating and separating suspended cells based on their intrinsic dielectric characteristics without the need for labeling procedure. A good practice, beyond the physical and engineering components, is the selection of a buffer that does not hinder cellular and biochemical parameters as well as cell recovery. In the present work the impact of four buffers on biochemical, morphological, and mechanical parameters was evaluated in two different cancer cell lines (Caco-2 and K562). Specifically, MTT ([3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide]) assay along with flow cytometry analysis were used to evaluate the occurring changes in terms of cell viability, morphology, and granulocyte stress formation, all factors directly influencing DEP sorting capability. Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) was instead employed to evaluate the gene expression levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), two well-known markers of inflammation and oxidative stress, respectively. An additional marker representing an index of cellular metabolic status, i.e. the expression of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) gene, was also evaluated. Among the four buffers considered, two resulted satisfactory in terms of cell viability and growth recovery (24 h), with no significant changes in cell morphology for up to 1 h in suspension. Of note, gene expression analysis showed that in both cell lines the apparently non-cytotoxic buffers significantly modulated IL-6, iNOS, and GAPDH markers, underlining the importance to deeply investigate the molecular and biochemical changes occurring during the analysis, even at apparently non-toxic conditions. The selection of a useful buffer for the separation and analysis of cells without labeling procedures, preserving cell status, represents a key factor for DEP analysis, giving the opportunity to further use cells for additional analysis.
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Xu X, Huang X, Sun J, Chen J, Wu G, Yao Y, Zhou N, Wang S, Sun L. 3D-Stacked Multistage Inertial Microfluidic Chip for High-Throughput Enrichment of Circulating Tumor Cells. CYBORG AND BIONIC SYSTEMS 2022; 2022:9829287. [PMID: 38645277 PMCID: PMC11030111 DOI: 10.34133/2022/9829287] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2022] [Accepted: 06/26/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Whether for cancer diagnosis or single-cell analysis, it remains a major challenge to isolate the target sample cells from a large background cell for high-efficiency downstream detection and analysis in an integrated chip. Therefore, in this paper, we propose a 3D-stacked multistage inertial microfluidic sorting chip for high-throughput enrichment of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and convenient downstream analysis. In this chip, the first stage is a spiral channel with a trapezoidal cross-section, which has better separation performance than a spiral channel with a rectangular cross-section. The second and third stages adopt symmetrical square serpentine channels with different rectangular cross-section widths for further separation and enrichment of sample cells reducing the outlet flow rate for easier downstream detection and analysis. The multistage channel can separate 5 μm and 15 μm particles with a separation efficiency of 92.37% and purity of 98.10% at a high inlet flow rate of 1.3 mL/min. Meanwhile, it can separate tumor cells (SW480, A549, and Caki-1) from massive red blood cells (RBCs) with a separation efficiency of >80%, separation purity of >90%, and a concentration fold of ~20. The proposed work is aimed at providing a high-throughput sample processing system that can be easily integrated with flowing sample detection methods for rapid CTC analysis.
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Affiliation(s)
- X. Xu
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of RF Circuits and Systems, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou, 310018 Zhejiang, China
| | - X. Huang
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of RF Circuits and Systems, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou, 310018 Zhejiang, China
| | - J. Sun
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of RF Circuits and Systems, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou, 310018 Zhejiang, China
| | - J. Chen
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of RF Circuits and Systems, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou, 310018 Zhejiang, China
| | - G. Wu
- Institute for Translational Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310029 Zhejiang, China
| | - Y. Yao
- Key Laboratory of 3D Micro/Nano Fabrication and Characterization of Zhejiang Province, School of Engineering, Westlake University, Hangzhou, 310024 Zhejiang, China
| | - N. Zhou
- Key Laboratory of 3D Micro/Nano Fabrication and Characterization of Zhejiang Province, School of Engineering, Westlake University, Hangzhou, 310024 Zhejiang, China
| | - S. Wang
- Institute for Translational Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310029 Zhejiang, China
- National Engineering Research Center for Biomaterials, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
- Clinical Research Center for Respiratory Disease, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
- Institute for Advanced Study, Chengdu University, Chengdu 610106, China
| | - L. Sun
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of RF Circuits and Systems, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou, 310018 Zhejiang, China
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Farasat M, Aalaei E, Kheirati Ronizi S, Bakhshi A, Mirhosseini S, Zhang J, Nguyen NT, Kashaninejad N. Signal-Based Methods in Dielectrophoresis for Cell and Particle Separation. BIOSENSORS 2022; 12:510. [PMID: 35884313 PMCID: PMC9313092 DOI: 10.3390/bios12070510] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2022] [Revised: 06/29/2022] [Accepted: 07/04/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Separation and detection of cells and particles in a suspension are essential for various applications, including biomedical investigations and clinical diagnostics. Microfluidics realizes the miniaturization of analytical devices by controlling the motion of a small volume of fluids in microchannels and microchambers. Accordingly, microfluidic devices have been widely used in particle/cell manipulation processes. Different microfluidic methods for particle separation include dielectrophoretic, magnetic, optical, acoustic, hydrodynamic, and chemical techniques. Dielectrophoresis (DEP) is a method for manipulating polarizable particles' trajectories in non-uniform electric fields using unique dielectric characteristics. It provides several advantages for dealing with neutral bioparticles owing to its sensitivity, selectivity, and noninvasive nature. This review provides a detailed study on the signal-based DEP methods that use the applied signal parameters, including frequency, amplitude, phase, and shape for cell/particle separation and manipulation. Rather than employing complex channels or time-consuming fabrication procedures, these methods realize sorting and detecting the cells/particles by modifying the signal parameters while using a relatively simple device. In addition, these methods can significantly impact clinical diagnostics by making low-cost and rapid separation possible. We conclude the review by discussing the technical and biological challenges of DEP techniques and providing future perspectives in this field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Malihe Farasat
- School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, College of Engineering, Tehran University, Tehran 14399-57131, Iran; (M.F.); (A.B.); (S.M.)
| | - Ehsan Aalaei
- School of Mechanical Engineering, Shiraz University, Shiraz 71936-16548, Iran; (E.A.); (S.K.R.)
| | - Saeed Kheirati Ronizi
- School of Mechanical Engineering, Shiraz University, Shiraz 71936-16548, Iran; (E.A.); (S.K.R.)
| | - Atin Bakhshi
- School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, College of Engineering, Tehran University, Tehran 14399-57131, Iran; (M.F.); (A.B.); (S.M.)
| | - Shaghayegh Mirhosseini
- School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, College of Engineering, Tehran University, Tehran 14399-57131, Iran; (M.F.); (A.B.); (S.M.)
| | - Jun Zhang
- Queensland Micro-Nanotechnology Centre, Griffith University, Nathan, QLD 4111, Australia; (J.Z.); (N.-T.N.)
| | - Nam-Trung Nguyen
- Queensland Micro-Nanotechnology Centre, Griffith University, Nathan, QLD 4111, Australia; (J.Z.); (N.-T.N.)
| | - Navid Kashaninejad
- Queensland Micro-Nanotechnology Centre, Griffith University, Nathan, QLD 4111, Australia; (J.Z.); (N.-T.N.)
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Huang X, Torres‐Castro K, Varhue W, Rane A, Rasin A, Swami NS. On‐chip microfluidic buffer swap of biological samples in‐line with downstream dielectrophoresis. Electrophoresis 2022; 43:1275-1282. [PMID: 35286736 PMCID: PMC9203925 DOI: 10.1002/elps.202100304] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2021] [Revised: 12/12/2021] [Accepted: 01/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Microfluidic cell enrichment by dielectrophoresis, based on biophysical and electrophysiology phenotypes, requires that cells be resuspended from their physiological media into a lower conductivity buffer for enhancing force fields and enabling the dielectric contrast needed for separation. To ensure that sensitive cells are not subject to centrifugation for resuspension and spend minimal time outside of their culture media, we present an on‐chip microfluidic strategy for swapping cells into media tailored for dielectrophoresis. This strategy transfers cells from physiological media into a 100‐fold lower conductivity media by using tangential flows of low media conductivity at 200‐fold higher flow rate versus sample flow to promote ion diffusion over the length of a straight channel architecture that maintains laminarity of the flow‐focused sample and minimizes cell dispersion across streamlines. Serpentine channels are used downstream from the flow‐focusing region to modulate hydrodynamic resistance of the central sample outlet versus flanking outlets that remove excess buffer, so that cell streamlines are collected in the exchanged buffer with minimal dilution in cell numbers and at flow rates that support dielectrophoresis. We envision integration of this on‐chip sample preparation platform prior to or post‐dielectrophoresis, in‐line with on‐chip monitoring of the outlet sample for metrics of media conductivity, cell velocity, cell viability, cell position, and collected cell numbers, so that the cell flow rate and streamlines can be tailored for enabling dielectrophoretic separations from heterogeneous samples.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xuhai Huang
- Electrical and Computer Engineering University of Virginia Charlottesville Virginia USA
| | - Karina Torres‐Castro
- Electrical and Computer Engineering University of Virginia Charlottesville Virginia USA
| | - Walter Varhue
- Electrical and Computer Engineering University of Virginia Charlottesville Virginia USA
| | - Aditya Rane
- Department of Chemistry University of Virginia Charlottesville Virginia USA
| | - Ahmed Rasin
- Electrical and Computer Engineering University of Virginia Charlottesville Virginia USA
| | - Nathan S. Swami
- Electrical and Computer Engineering University of Virginia Charlottesville Virginia USA
- Department of Chemistry University of Virginia Charlottesville Virginia USA
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12
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Li Y, Wang Y, Pesch GR, Baune M, Du F, Liu X. Rational Design and Numerical Analysis of a Hybrid Floating cIDE Separator for Continuous Dielectrophoretic Separation of Microparticles at High Throughput. MICROMACHINES 2022; 13:mi13040582. [PMID: 35457887 PMCID: PMC9026825 DOI: 10.3390/mi13040582] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2022] [Revised: 03/30/2022] [Accepted: 04/06/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Dielectrophoresis (DEP) enables continuous and label-free separation of (bio)microparticles with high sensitivity and selectivity, whereas the low throughput issue greatly confines its clinical application. Herein, we report a novel design of the DEP separator embedded with cylindrical interdigitated electrodes that incorporate hybrid floating electrode layout for (bio)microparticle separation at favorable throughput. To better predict microparticle trajectory in the scaled-up DEP platform, a theoretical model based on coupling of electrostatic, fluid and temperature fields is established, in which the effects of Joule heating-induced electrothermal and buoyancy flows on particles are considered. Size-based fractionation of polystyrene microspheres and dielectric properties-based isolation of MDA-MB-231 from blood cells are numerically realized, respectively, by the proposed separator with sample throughputs up to 2.6 mL/min. Notably, the induced flows can promote DEP discrimination of heterogeneous cells. This work provides a reference on tailoring design of enlarged DEP platforms for highly efficient separation of (bio)samples at high throughput.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yalin Li
- College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266071, China;
| | - Yan Wang
- College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266071, China;
- Correspondence: (Y.W.); (X.L.)
| | - Georg R. Pesch
- Chemical Process Engineering, Faculty of Production Engineering, University of Bremen, Leobener Straße 6, 28359 Bremen, Germany; (G.R.P.); (M.B.)
| | - Michael Baune
- Chemical Process Engineering, Faculty of Production Engineering, University of Bremen, Leobener Straße 6, 28359 Bremen, Germany; (G.R.P.); (M.B.)
| | - Fei Du
- Institute of Water Chemistry, Technische Universität Dresden, 01062 Dresden, Germany;
| | - Xiaomin Liu
- College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266071, China;
- Correspondence: (Y.W.); (X.L.)
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13
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Chen T, Huang C, Wang Y, Wu J. Microfluidic methods for cell separation and subsequent analysis. CHINESE CHEM LETT 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cclet.2021.07.067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
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14
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Salahi A, Honrado C, Rane A, Caselli F, Swami NS. Modified Red Blood Cells as Multimodal Standards for Benchmarking Single-Cell Cytometry and Separation Based on Electrical Physiology. Anal Chem 2022; 94:2865-2872. [PMID: 35107262 PMCID: PMC8852356 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.1c04739] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2021] [Accepted: 01/18/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Biophysical cellular information at single-cell sensitivity is becoming increasingly important within analytical and separation platforms that associate the cell phenotype with markers of disease, infection, and immunity. Frequency-modulated electrically driven microfluidic measurement and separation systems offer the ability to sensitively identify single cells based on biophysical information, such as their size and shape, as well as their subcellular membrane morphology and cytoplasmic organization. However, there is a lack of reliable and reproducible model particles with well-tuned subcellular electrical phenotypes that can be used as standards to benchmark the electrical physiology of unknown cell types or to benchmark dielectrophoretic separation metrics of novel device strategies. Herein, the application of red blood cells (RBCs) as multimodal standard particles with systematically modulated subcellular electrophysiology and associated fluorescence level is presented. Using glutaraldehyde fixation to vary membrane capacitance and by membrane resealing after electrolyte penetration to vary interior cytoplasmic conductivity and fluorescence in a correlated manner, each modified RBC type can be identified at single-cell sensitivity based on phenomenological impedance metrics and fitted to dielectric models to compute biophysical information. In this manner, single-cell impedance data from unknown RBC types can be mapped versus these model RBC types for facile determination of subcellular biophysical information and their dielectrophoretic separation conditions, without the need for time-consuming algorithms that often require unknown fitting parameters. Such internal standards for biophysical cytometry can advance in-line phenotypic recognition strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Armita Salahi
- Electrical
and Computer Engineering, University of
Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
| | - Carlos Honrado
- Electrical
and Computer Engineering, University of
Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
| | - Aditya Rane
- Chemistry, University
of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
| | - Federica Caselli
- Civil
Engineering and Computer Science, University
of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy
| | - Nathan S. Swami
- Electrical
and Computer Engineering, University of
Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
- Chemistry, University
of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
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15
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Xu X, Huang X, Sun J, Wang R, Yao J, Han W, Wei M, Chen J, Guo J, Sun L, Yin M. Recent progress of inertial microfluidic-based cell separation. Analyst 2021; 146:7070-7086. [PMID: 34761757 DOI: 10.1039/d1an01160j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Cell separation has consistently been a pivotal technology of sample preparation in biomedical research. Compared with conventional bulky cell separation technologies applied in the clinic, cell separation based on microfluidics can accurately manipulate the displacement of liquid or cells at the microscale, which has great potential in point-of-care testing (POCT) applications due to small device size, low cost, low sample consumption, and high operating accuracy. Among various microfluidic cell separation technologies, inertial microfluidics has attracted great attention due to its simple structure and high throughput. In recent years, many researchers have explored the principles and applications of inertial microfluidics and developed different channel structures, including straight channels, curved channels, and multistage channels. However, the recently developed multistage channels have not been discussed and classified in detail compared with more widely discussed straight and curved channels. Therefore, in this review, a comprehensive and detailed review of recent progress in the multistage channel is presented. According to the channel structure, the inertial microfluidic separation technology is divided into (i) straight channel, (ii) curved channel, (iii) composite channel, and (iv) integrated device. The structural development of straight and curved channels is discussed in detail. And based on straight and curved channels, the multistage cell separation structures are reviewed, with a special focus on a variety of latest structures and related innovations of composite and integrated channels. Finally, the future prospects for the existing challenges in the development of inertial microfluidic cell separation technology are presented.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xuefeng Xu
- Key Laboratory of RF Circuits and Systems, Ministry of Education, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou 310018, China.
| | - Xiwei Huang
- Key Laboratory of RF Circuits and Systems, Ministry of Education, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou 310018, China.
| | - Jingjing Sun
- Key Laboratory of RF Circuits and Systems, Ministry of Education, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou 310018, China.
| | - Renjie Wang
- Key Laboratory of RF Circuits and Systems, Ministry of Education, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou 310018, China.
| | - Jiangfan Yao
- Key Laboratory of RF Circuits and Systems, Ministry of Education, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou 310018, China.
| | - Wentao Han
- Key Laboratory of RF Circuits and Systems, Ministry of Education, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou 310018, China.
| | - Maoyu Wei
- Key Laboratory of RF Circuits and Systems, Ministry of Education, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou 310018, China.
| | - Jin Chen
- Key Laboratory of RF Circuits and Systems, Ministry of Education, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou 310018, China.
| | - Jinhong Guo
- School of Communication and Information Engineering, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 611731, China
| | - Lingling Sun
- Key Laboratory of RF Circuits and Systems, Ministry of Education, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou 310018, China.
| | - Ming Yin
- The Second Medical Center and National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Diseases, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing 100853, China.
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16
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Zhou X, Li Z, Zhang Z, Zhu L, Liu Q. A rapid and label-free platform for virus enrichment based on electrostatic microfluidics. Talanta 2021; 242:122989. [PMID: 35189409 DOI: 10.1016/j.talanta.2021.122989] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2021] [Revised: 10/15/2021] [Accepted: 10/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Virus surveillance and discovery are crucial for virus prediction and outbreak preparedness. Virus samples are frequently bulky and complicated so that effective virus detection remain challenging. Herein, we develop an 3D electrostatic microfluidic platform to rapidly and label-free enrich viruses from bulky samples at low concentrations. The platform consists of double microchannels for streamlining large volume processing and electrodes for enriching viruses by electrostatic interaction. The trajectories of simulation show that particle is successfully enriched under different forces of electrostatic field and different sample flow rates. We demonstrate that the electrostatic microfluidic platform can increase the limit of detection in 100-fold higher based on real-time PCR quantified analysis. Our design thus provides a simple, rapid, label-free and high-throughput viruses concentration platform and would thus have significant utility for various viral detection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoxiang Zhou
- State Key Laboratory of Bioelectronics, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, No. 2, Sipailou, Nanjing, 210096, PR China
| | - Zhanping Li
- State Key Laboratory of Bioelectronics, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, No. 2, Sipailou, Nanjing, 210096, PR China
| | - Zhen Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Bioelectronics, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, No. 2, Sipailou, Nanjing, 210096, PR China
| | - Libo Zhu
- State Key Laboratory of Bioelectronics, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, No. 2, Sipailou, Nanjing, 210096, PR China
| | - Quanjun Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Bioelectronics, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, No. 2, Sipailou, Nanjing, 210096, PR China.
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17
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Zhou Z, Chen Y, Zhu S, Liu L, Ni Z, Xiang N. Inertial microfluidics for high-throughput cell analysis and detection: a review. Analyst 2021; 146:6064-6083. [PMID: 34490431 DOI: 10.1039/d1an00983d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Since it was first proposed in 2007, inertial microfluidics has been extensively studied in terms of theory, design, fabrication, and application. In recent years, with the rapid development of microfabrication technologies, a variety of channel structures that can focus, concentrate, separate, and capture bioparticles or fluids have been designed and manufactured to extend the range of potential biomedical applications of inertial microfluidics. Due to the advantages of high throughput, simplicity, and low device cost, inertial microfluidics is a promising candidate for rapid sample processing, especially for large-volume samples with low-abundance targets. As an approach to cellular sample pretreatment, inertial microfluidics has been widely employed to ensure downstream cell analysis and detection. In this review, a comprehensive summary of the application of inertial microfluidics for high-throughput cell analysis and detection is presented. According to application areas, the recent advances can be sorted into label-free cell mechanical phenotyping, sheathless flow cytometric counting, electrical impedance cytometer, high-throughput cellular image analysis, and other methods. Finally, the challenges and prospects of inertial microfluidics for cell analysis and detection are summarized.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zheng Zhou
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China.
| | - Yao Chen
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China.
| | - Shu Zhu
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China.
| | - Linbo Liu
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China.
| | - Zhonghua Ni
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China.
| | - Nan Xiang
- School of Mechanical Engineering, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China.
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18
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Zhu S, Zhang X, Chen M, Tang D, Han Y, Xiang N, Ni Z. An easy-fabricated and disposable polymer-film microfluidic impedance cytometer for cell sensing. Anal Chim Acta 2021; 1175:338759. [PMID: 34330437 DOI: 10.1016/j.aca.2021.338759] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2021] [Revised: 05/14/2021] [Accepted: 06/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
We report here an easy-fabricated and disposable polymer-film microfluidic impedance cytometer (PMIC) integrated with inertial focusing and parallel facing electrodes for cell sensing. The cells are first focused in an asymmetric serpentine channel, and then their impedance signals are measured when passing through the electrode region. The proposed PMIC device is the first impedance cytometer that is fabricated into a flexible sheet (with a thickness of 0.45 mm) by using the materials of commonly-available ITO-coated polymer films and double-sided adhesive tapes, the whole fabrication process is shortened from traditional 3-4 days to less than 5 min by using UV laser cutting. To verify the feasibility of our device for cell sensing, we explore the focusing behaviors of three differently sized particles and two types of tumor cells, and analyze their impedance signals. The results show that our device is capable of obtaining impedance information on numbers, diameters, and longitudinal positions of cells. We envision that our PMIC device is promising in label-free cell sensing owning to the advantages of low cost, small footprint, and simple fabrication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shu Zhu
- School of Mechanical Engineering, And Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China
| | - Xiaozhe Zhang
- School of Mechanical Engineering, And Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China
| | - Mu Chen
- School of Mechanical Engineering, And Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China
| | - Dezhi Tang
- School of Mechanical Engineering, And Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China
| | - Yu Han
- School of Mechanical Engineering, And Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China
| | - Nan Xiang
- School of Mechanical Engineering, And Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China.
| | - Zhonghua Ni
- School of Mechanical Engineering, And Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China.
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