Institute for Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, 164 College St., Toronto, ON M5S3G9, Canada.
Biomed Microdevices. 2011 Feb;13(1):41-50. doi: 10.1007/s10544-010-9469-3.
We introduce a micro-scale bioreactor for automated culture and density analysis of microorganisms. The microbioreactor is powered by digital microfluidics (DMF) and because it is used with bacteria, algae and yeast, we call it the BAY microbioreactor. Previous miniaturized bioreactors have relied on microchannels which often require valves, mixers and complex optical systems. In contrast, the BAY microbioreactor is capable of culturing microorganisms in distinct droplets on a format compatible with conventional bench-top analyzers without the use of valves, mixers or pumps. Bacteria, algae and yeast were grown for up to 5 days with automated semi-continuous mixing and temperature control. Cell densities were determined by measuring absorbances through transparent regions of the devices, and growth profiles were shown to be comparable to those generated in conventional, macro-scale systems. Cell growth and density measurements were integrated in the microbioreactor with a fluorescent viability assay and transformation of bacteria with a fluorescent reporter gene. These results suggest that DMF may be a useful new tool in automated culture and analysis of microorganisms for a wide range of applications.
我们介绍了一种用于微生物自动培养和密度分析的微尺度生物反应器。该微生物反应器由数字微流控（DMF）驱动，由于它用于细菌、藻类和酵母，我们称之为 BAY 微生物反应器。以前的小型化生物反应器依赖于微通道，这些微通道通常需要阀门、混合器和复杂的光学系统。相比之下，BAY 微生物反应器能够在与传统台式分析仪兼容的格式中在离散的液滴中培养微生物，而无需使用阀门、混合器或泵。细菌、藻类和酵母在自动半连续混合和温度控制下培养长达 5 天。通过测量设备透明区域的吸光度来确定细胞密度，并且生长曲线与在传统的宏观尺度系统中生成的曲线相当。细胞生长和密度测量与荧光生存力测定和带有荧光报告基因的细菌转化一起集成在微生物反应器中。这些结果表明，DMF 可能是一种用于广泛应用的微生物自动培养和分析的有用新工具。
