Yang Y, Zhou X L, Zhou N F, Shao W Q, Tao L R
Institute of Biomedical Technology, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai, China.
Cryo Letters. 2017 Jan/Feb;38(1):37-42.
Oocyte vitrification is a practical tool in assisted reproductive technology and fertility preservation. However, vitrification requires high concentration of cryoprotectants (CPAs), which may cause osmotic injury and is toxic to oocytes during the addition and removal process of CPAs.
To minimize osmotic and toxic injuries, a microfluidic device was designed to provide continuous concentration changes of CPAs to oocytes.
Numerical simulations were first used to investigate the effects of geometric parameters of microchannel on water- MeSO mixing performance. A microfluidic device was then fabricated via soft lithography. Distilled water and 30 percent MeSO containing 1mM fluorescence dye FITC were mixed using the microfluidic device to verify the CPA diffusion behavior.
The mixing performance in the microfluidic device strongly depends on the channel geometry and the flow rates of the fluids. Linear CPA loading profiles with diverse slopes were obtained by controlling the flow rate and the loading time of CPA and the buffer solution in the microfluidic device.
The designed microfluidic device can yield linear CPA loading profiles with different slopes.
卵母细胞玻璃化是辅助生殖技术和生育力保存中的一种实用工具。然而，玻璃化需要高浓度的冷冻保护剂（CPA），这可能会导致渗透损伤，并且在CPA的添加和去除过程中对卵母细胞有毒性。
为了将渗透和毒性损伤降至最低，设计了一种微流控装置，以向卵母细胞提供CPA的连续浓度变化。
首先使用数值模拟来研究微通道几何参数对水 - 甲基亚砜（MeSO）混合性能的影响。然后通过软光刻制造微流控装置。使用该微流控装置将蒸馏水和含有1mM荧光染料异硫氰酸荧光素（FITC）的30% MeSO混合，以验证CPA的扩散行为。
微流控装置中的混合性能强烈依赖于通道几何形状和流体流速。通过控制微流控装置中CPA和缓冲溶液的流速和加载时间，获得了具有不同斜率的线性CPA加载曲线。
所设计的微流控装置可以产生具有不同斜率的线性CPA加载曲线。
