Li Yong-Jiang, Yang Yu-Nong, Zhang Hai-Jun, Xue Chun-Dong, Zeng De-Pei, Cao Tun, Qin Kai-Rong
School of Optoelectronic Engineering and Instrumentation Science, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, Liaoning, China.
School of Biomedical Engineering, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, Liaoning, China.
Micromachines (Basel). 2019 Feb 16;10(2):131. doi: 10.3390/mi10020131.
The biomechanical properties of single cells show great potential for early disease diagnosis and effective treatments. In this study, a microfluidic device was developed for quantifying the mechanical properties of a single cell. Micropipette aspiration was integrated into a microfluidic device that mimics a classical Wheatstone bridge circuit. This technique allows us not only to effectively alter the flow direction for single-cell trapping, but also to precisely control the pressure exerted on the aspirated cells, analogous to the feature of the Wheatstone bridge that can precisely control bridge voltage and current. By combining the micropipette aspiration technique into the microfluidic device, we can effectively trap the microparticles and Hela cells as well as measure the deformability of cells. The Young's modulus of Hela cells was evaluated to be 387 ± 77 Pa, which is consistent with previous micropipette aspiration studies. The simplicity, precision, and usability of our device show good potential for biomechanical trials in clinical diagnosis and cell biology research.
单细胞的生物力学特性在疾病早期诊断和有效治疗方面显示出巨大潜力。在本研究中,开发了一种用于量化单细胞力学特性的微流控装置。微量移液器抽吸技术被集成到一个模拟经典惠斯通电桥电路的微流控装置中。该技术不仅使我们能够有效地改变用于单细胞捕获的流动方向,还能精确控制施加在被抽吸细胞上的压力,这类似于惠斯通电桥能够精确控制桥电压和电流的特性。通过将微量移液器抽吸技术与微流控装置相结合,我们能够有效地捕获微粒和HeLa细胞,并测量细胞的可变形性。经评估,HeLa细胞的杨氏模量为387±77帕斯卡,这与之前的微量移液器抽吸研究结果一致。我们装置的简单性、精确性和实用性在临床诊断和细胞生物学研究的生物力学试验中显示出良好的潜力。