Abstract
Biological sciences have reached the fundamental unit of life: the cell. Ever-growing field of Biological Microelectromechanical Systems (BioMEMSs) is providing new frontiers in both fundamental cell research and various practical applications in cell-related studies. Among various functions of BioMEMS devices, some of the most fundamental processes that can be carried out in such platforms include cell sorting, cell separation, cell isolation or trapping, cell pairing, cell-cell communication, cell differentiation, cell identification, and cell culture. In this article, we review each mentioned application in great details highlighting the latest advancements in fabrication strategy, mechanism of operation, and application of these tools. Moreover, the review article covers the shortcomings of each specific application which can open windows of opportunity for improvement of these devices.
Highlights
The analytical platforms that facilitate growing, monitoring, analyzing, and manipulating cells are essential to the advancements of the biological and biomedical fields [1]
Microfluidic platforms can provide an in vivo-mimicked environment where studies of intercellular communication are performed offering advantages over other systems including a precise control of dynamic perfusion, extracellular chemical environment, cell arrangement, and single-cell manipulation [5, 8]
Carreras et al proposed the use of a poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA)-based microfluidic device that generated a double-layered microdroplet bead to culture hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) from bone marrow
Summary
The analytical platforms that facilitate growing, monitoring, analyzing, and manipulating cells are essential to the advancements of the biological and biomedical fields [1]. Biological Microelectromechanical Systems (BioMEMSs) have emerged as great alternatives to facilitate cell studies for multiple applications These devices are compact and portable while operating on small sample volume and offering automatization of multiple processes. The intrinsic properties of cells including size, shape, deformability, and charge play a crucial role in physically manipulating them [3, 4]. These devices rely on several forces including electrical, magnetic, mechanical, hydrodynamic, and centrifugal forces to manipulate cells for intended applications. In. specific, applications such as cell sorting, cell separation, cell isolation or trapping, cell pairing, cell-cell communication, cell differentiation and identification, and cell culture in latest designs of BioMEMS are thoroughly reviewed (Figure 1). The review article covers limitations and shortcoming of BioMEMS in cell-related studies with specific emphasis on the applications of interest
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