Abstract
Microcirculation is one of the basic functional processes where the main gas exchange between red blood cells (RBCs) and surrounding tissues occurs. It is greatly influenced by the shape and deformability of RBCs, which can be affected by oxidative stress induced by different drugs and diseases leading to anemia. Here we investigated how in vitro microfluidic characterization of RBCs transit velocity in microcapillaries can indicate cells damage and its correlation with clinical hematological analysis. For this purpose, we compared an SU-8 mold with an Si-etched mold for fabrication of PDMS microfluidic devices and quantitatively figured out that oxidative stress induced by tert-Butyl hydroperoxide splits all RBCs into two subpopulations of normal and slow cells according to their transit velocity. Obtained results agree with the hematological analysis showing that such changes in RBCs velocities are due to violations of shape, volume, and increased heterogeneity of the cells. These data show that characterization of RBCs transport in microfluidic devices can directly reveal violations of microcirculation caused by oxidative stress. Therefore, it can be used for characterization of the ability of RBCs to move in microcapillaries, estimating possible side effects of cancer chemotherapy, and predicting the risk of anemia.
Highlights
One of the main current trends in the development of microfluidic devices is “organson-a-chip” [1–3]
We investigate the effect of the geometric dimensions of the microfluidic microchannels and the roughness of their walls on the red blood cells (RBCs) velocity under different oxidative stress conditions caused by exposure to tert-Butyl hydroperoxide
To study the RBCs microcirculation, we developed a microfluidic device containing
Summary
One of the main current trends in the development of microfluidic devices is “organson-a-chip” [1–3]. Several methods that directly assess the deformability of cells have been developed, including aspiration into a micropipette, optical stretching, and atomic force microscopy [16–19] These methods have low productivity and high labor intensity, which does not allow their use in clinical practice. We investigate the effect of the geometric dimensions of the microfluidic microchannels and the roughness of their walls on the RBCs velocity under different oxidative stress conditions caused by exposure to tert-Butyl hydroperoxide (tBuOOH) To vary these parameters of the microfluidic devices, we compare the capabilities of the two soft lithography mold fabrication technologies, namely SU-8micropatterning and direct silicon etching. The data obtained will allow the development of more efficient microfluidic devices for simulating microcirculation to analyze the effect of oxidative stress on red blood cells and improve personal strategies of cancer chemotherapy
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
