Abstract
The ability to manipulate magnetic particles selectively and simultaneously (within a group of such particles) has significant implications in studying cellular behaviors and in manipulating micro-structures at an ensemble-level. The current magnetic manipulation techniques have been demonstrated to be effective for studying cell mechanics. However, they suffer from low throughput, as only one particle is addressed in an individual experiment. This renders them unsuitable for ensemble-level operations. In this paper, we present a magnetic manipulation system that enables (effectively) simultaneous yet localized manipulation of magnetic particles. The proposed system is equipped with a novel device, which realizes magnetic force localization. The properly localized force allows selective manipulation of a single magnetic particle in a group. The localization effects of this device are demonstrated and quantified through analytical modeling and simulations that yielded statistically meaningful results. With the characterized device, experiments were carried out to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed system.
Highlights
Manipulation of magnetic particles has been demonstrated to be an effective technique for investigating the mechanical behaviour of biological systems
This involves embedding magnetic particles in the extracellular matrix (ECM) through bioconjugation, and employing a localized magnetic force to anchor the particles in their nominal positions while they are subjected to possible cellular forces
By introducing a multiplicative scaling function of cuI vu to the magnetic fields B1 and B2 separately, we are able to achieve a good agreement between the two results
Summary
Manipulation of magnetic particles has been demonstrated to be an effective technique for investigating the mechanical behaviour of biological systems It is applied in a wide range of studies, including the measurement of the elasticity of biopolymers, and the targeted delivery of genetic material to cells for treatment [1]–[3]. One possible application is in the mechanical manipulation of extracellular matrix (ECM) stiffness for the investigation of cell-matrix mechanical interactions [8]–[11] This involves embedding magnetic particles in the ECM through bioconjugation (with the particles firmly attached to the collagen fibers in the ECM), and employing a localized magnetic force to anchor the particles (individually) in their nominal positions while they are subjected to possible cellular forces. Such an ECM stiffness manipulation could provide insight as to how cells process cues from their surrounding environment
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