Abstract
Cell dielectric properties, a type of intrinsic property of cells, can be used as electrophysiological biomarkers that offer a label-free way to characterize cell phenotypes and states, purify clinical samples, and identify target cancer cells. Here, we present a review of the determination of cell dielectric properties using alternating current (AC) electrokinetic-based microfluidic mechanisms, including electro-rotation (ROT) and dielectrophoresis (DEP). The review covers theoretically how ROT and DEP work to extract cell dielectric properties. We also dive into the details of differently structured ROT chips, followed by a discussion on the determination of cell dielectric properties and the use of these properties in bio-related applications. Additionally, the review offers a look at the future challenges facing the AC electrokinetic-based microfluidic platform in terms of acquiring cell dielectric parameters. Our conclusion is that this platform will bring biomedical and bioengineering sciences to the next level and ultimately achieve the shift from lab-oriented research to real-world applications.
Highlights
The intrinsic properties of cells, such as the geometrical parameters [1,2], refractive index [3,4], stiffness [5], Young modulus [6], and dielectric parameters [7], have received widespread attention in bio-related fields
The real-time characterization of the deformation parameter of red blood cells (RBCs) reveals that the increase in the cytoskeletal tension of RBCs and the decrease in the bending modulus of RBCs are directly correlated with the parasite invasion efficiency, thereby implying the occurrence of malaria parasite invasion [12]
It has been demonstrated that cell membrane capacitance, a type of cell dielectric parameter, can be used for the real-time, label-free, and contact-free monitoring of stem cell differentiation [13]
Summary
The intrinsic properties of cells, such as the geometrical parameters [1,2], refractive index [3,4], stiffness [5], Young modulus [6], and dielectric parameters [7], have received widespread attention in bio-related fields. Optical tweezers, utilizing an optical force that results in cell deformation, offer a way to obtain the mechanical parameters of cells and assess drug effects [29,30,31,32,33,34] The advantages of this method mainly involve it being contact-free and single-cell resolution. The combination of bulk acoustic waves with microfluidic chips is a method that examines cellular motions under the acoustic wave field to enable the non-invasive and contact-free extraction of cell density and compressibility [35,36]. This hybrid method can only obtain the mechanical properties of cells. We outline the current status and future challenges for the AC electrokinetic-based extraction of cell dielectric parameters
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