Microfluidics and its applications in quantitative biology

Abstract

Biology research is entering a new era when quantitative measurements are needed to advance our knowledge of the biological systems to the next level where biological behaviors can be understood, predicted and even manipulated. Microfluidics, which manipulate and process small amounts of fluid (10–10 litres) by using channels with dimensions of tens to hundreds of micrometers, provides an exciting opportunity to study cellular behaviors at both singleand multi-cellular levels quantitatively [1]. Microfluidic experiments have the unique capability in providing accurate stimuli to the cells in both space and time with biomimetic physiological conditions to reveal the dynamics of the underlying cellular processes, such as signaling pathway, cell growth and development, and ageing. In addition, microfluidic devices can be parallelized for high throughput, high fidelity experimentation to unravel complex biochemical networks controlling biological behaviors. On the technology side, microfluidics have shown great potential to revolutionize our ability to do genetic analysis at the single cell level, high throughput drug screening, disease diagnostics, and biological and chemical detections. In October 16–18, 2013, the Center for Quantitative Biology at Peking University hosted an international conference on “Microfluidics and Quantitative Biology” in Peking University. The conference brought many experts in this promising new field to discuss their work on development of state-of-the-art microfluidic techniques and applications of these techniques in solving various biological problems, such as cellular motility, cell cycle, ageing, cellular reprogramming, and cancer. Critical issues such as the potential new directions for microfluidics approaches in quantitative biology and fundamental bottlenecks (challenges) in microfluidic technology are also discussed during the conference. There are twenty invited speakers during the two and a half day meeting with lively discussions during the talks. The following is a brief report on the meeting with highlights arranged in the same order as the conference schedule.