Application of the Integrated System of Laser-Induced Heating and the Microfluidic Device for Selecting Cells Treated With Drugs

Abstract

The aim of this study is to develop a microfluidic device capable of trapping individual cells that have been treated with drugs, and to analyze and compare the cell capturing efficiency of the series-loop microchannels with the parallel-loop microchannels. The microfluidic device utilized in this project consists of PDMS. Each set of microchannels is composed of a main flow channel and several branch channels with capturing regions. The results indicate that the solution flows with greater resistance in the series-loop microchannels, thereby causing the entrance in the far end of the capturing zones to catch no cell. The cell capturing efficiency of the series-loop microchannels is only about 14% in this study. With regard to the flow resistance, it is greatly reduced in the parallel-loop microchannels; capturing efficiency is thus promoted. Last, due to the difference in flow rates, the cells are inclined to flow towards the branch channels rather than the main channel, thereby promoting successful trapping of cells. Additionally, incubating the cells treated with drugs for 4 hours in microfluidics device consequently causes mitotic arrest due to drug action among 70% of the cells in seven capturing zones. When the laser radiates at the ink in laser heating zone, as an output power of 0.6 W is yielded, the bubbleis formed and the cell is thereby pushed away from the capturing zone.