Waeterschoot Jorik, Kayahan Emine, Breukers Jolien, Lammertyn Jeroen, Casadevall I Solvas Xavier
Biomimetics Group, Divison of Mechatronics, Biostatistics and Sensors (MeBios), Department of Biosystems KU Leuven, Willem de Croylaan 42 3001 Leuven Belgium
Biosensors Group, Divison of Mechatronics, Biostatistics and Sensors (MeBios), Department of Biosystems KU Leuven, Willem de Croylaan 42 3001 Heverlee Belgium.
RSC Adv. 2024 Aug 1;14(33):24115-24129. doi: 10.1039/d4ra04298k. eCollection 2024 Jul 26.
Partially fluorinated nanoparticles (FNPs) have been proposed as a promising alternative for stabilising aqueous droplets in fluorinated oils. The exceptional energetic stability of FNPs at the droplet interface holds the potential for minimising leakage, enhancing stability, and promoting improved cell adhesion. However, their lower diffusion coefficient compared to surfactants presents challenges in achieving rapid droplet stabilisation, which is important in microfluidics applications. While several studies have focused on some of these aspects, a comprehensive study and direct comparison with conventional fluorosurfactants is still missing. In this manuscript, we undertake an examination and comparison of four crucial facets of both FNP- and surfactant-stabilised droplets: leakage of compounds, emulsion stability, droplet formation dynamics and cell adhesion. Contrary to what has previously been claimed, our findings demonstrate that FNPs only reduce leakage and cross-talk in very specific cases (, resorufin), failing to provide enhanced compartmentalisation for highly hydrophobic dyes (, rhodamine dyes). On the other hand, FNP-stabilised droplets indeed exhibit greater long-term stability compared to their surfactant-stabilised counterparts. Regarding the size of droplets generated a diversity of microfluidic methods, no significant differences were observed between FNP-stabilised and surfactant-stabilised droplets. Finally, the previously reported improvements in cell adhesion and spreading on FNP-stabilised interfaces is limited to flat oil/water (o/w) interfaces and could not be observed within droplets. These comprehensive analyses shed light on the nuanced performance of FNPs and commercial fluorosurfactants as stabilising agents for aqueous droplets in fluorinated oils, contributing valuable insights for choosing the correct formulation for specific droplet-based microfluidics applications.
部分氟化纳米颗粒（FNP）已被提议作为一种有前景的替代物，用于稳定氟化油中的水滴。FNP在液滴界面具有出色的能量稳定性，有望将泄漏降至最低、增强稳定性并促进细胞粘附的改善。然而，与表面活性剂相比，它们较低的扩散系数给实现快速液滴稳定带来了挑战，这在微流控应用中很重要。虽然有几项研究关注了其中一些方面，但仍缺少与传统含氟表面活性剂的全面研究和直接比较。在本手稿中，我们对FNP稳定和表面活性剂稳定的液滴的四个关键方面进行了研究和比较：化合物的泄漏、乳液稳定性、液滴形成动力学和细胞粘附。与之前的说法相反，我们的研究结果表明，FNP仅在非常特定的情况下（如试卤灵）减少泄漏和串扰，无法为高疏水性染料（如罗丹明染料）提供增强的分隔效果。另一方面，与表面活性剂稳定的液滴相比，FNP稳定的液滴确实表现出更高的长期稳定性。关于通过多种微流控方法产生的液滴大小，FNP稳定的液滴和表面活性剂稳定的液滴之间未观察到显著差异。最后，先前报道的细胞在FNP稳定界面上的粘附和铺展改善仅限于平坦的油/水（o/w）界面，在液滴内未观察到。这些全面分析揭示了FNP和商业含氟表面活性剂作为氟化油中水滴稳定剂的细微性能差异，为选择适用于特定基于液滴的微流控应用的正确配方提供了有价值的见解。
