Hou H W, Li Q S, Lee G Y H, Kumar A P, Ong C N, Lim C T
NUS Graduate School for Integrative Sciences and Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.
Biomed Microdevices. 2009 Jun;11(3):557-64. doi: 10.1007/s10544-008-9262-8.
Cell deformability is an important biomarker which can be used to distinguish between healthy and diseased cells. In this study, microfluidics is used to probe the biorheological behaviour of breast cancer cells in an attempt to develop a method to distinguish between non-malignant and malignant cells. A microfabricated fluidic channel design consisting of a straight channel and two reservoirs was used to study the biorheological behaviour of benign breast epithelial cells (MCF-10A) and non-metastatic tumor breast cells (MCF-7). Quantitative parameters such as entry time (time taken for the cell to squeeze into the microchannel) and transit velocity (speed of the cell flowing through the microchannel) were defined and measured from these studies. Our results demonstrated that a simple microfluidic device can be used to distinguish the difference in stiffness between benign and cancerous breast cells. This work lays the foundation for the development of potential microfluidic devices which can subsequently be used in the detection of cancer cells.
细胞变形性是一种重要的生物标志物，可用于区分健康细胞和患病细胞。在本研究中，微流控技术被用于探究乳腺癌细胞的生物流变行为，试图开发一种区分非恶性和恶性细胞的方法。一种由直通道和两个储液器组成的微制造流体通道设计被用于研究良性乳腺上皮细胞（MCF-10A）和非转移性肿瘤乳腺细胞（MCF-7）的生物流变行为。从这些研究中定义并测量了诸如进入时间（细胞挤入微通道所需的时间）和通过速度（细胞流经微通道的速度）等定量参数。我们的结果表明，一个简单的微流控装置可用于区分良性和癌性乳腺细胞之间的硬度差异。这项工作为潜在微流控装置的开发奠定了基础，这些装置随后可用于癌细胞的检测。
