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Micromachines
Special Issues
Microfluidics in Biomedical Applications
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Microfluidics in Biomedical Applications

A special issue of Micromachines (ISSN 2072-666X). This special issue belongs to the section "B：Biology and Biomedicine".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2023) | Viewed by 5210

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Martin Gonzalo Bellino

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Instituto de Nanociencia y Nanotecnología (CNEA-CONICET), Av. Gral Paz 1499, B1650KNA San Martín, Argentina
Interests: nano/microfluidics; nanocoatings; biomaterials

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The rise of what we call microfluidics in biomedical applications is characterized by an influx into biomedicine of microfluidic methods. The microfluidics indeed offers a growing set of tools for handling small volumes of fluids that are relevant to numerous biomedical disciplines, ranging from diagnostics to therapeutics in personalized medicine. This Special Issue invites manuscripts (research papers, perspectives and review articles) related to the exciting wide field of microfluidic platforms for biomedical applications.

Dr. Martin Gonzalo Bellino
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Micromachines is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • microfluidics
  • biomedicine
  • lab on a chip
  • organ on chip
  • biosensors
  • diagnostics
  • precision medicine
  • biochemistry
  • biotechnology
  • cell biology

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

10 pages, 2471 KiB  
Article
Droplets for Gene Editing Using CRISPR-Cas9 and Clonal Selection Improvement Using Hydrogels
by Camilo Pérez-Sosa, Maximiliano S. Pérez, Alexander Paolo Vallejo-Janeta, Shekhar Bhansali, Santiago Miriuka and Betiana Lerner
Micromachines 2024, 15(3), 413; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi15030413 - 19 Mar 2024
Viewed by 872
Abstract
Gene editing tools have triggered a revolutionary transformation in the realms of cellular and molecular physiology, serving as a fundamental cornerstone for the evolution of disease models and assays in cell culture reactions, marked by various enhancements. Concurrently, microfluidics has emerged over recent [...] Read more.
Gene editing tools have triggered a revolutionary transformation in the realms of cellular and molecular physiology, serving as a fundamental cornerstone for the evolution of disease models and assays in cell culture reactions, marked by various enhancements. Concurrently, microfluidics has emerged over recent decades as a versatile technology capable of elevating performance and reducing costs in daily experiments across diverse scientific disciplines, with a pronounced impact on cell biology. The amalgamation of these groundbreaking techniques holds the potential to amplify the generation of stable cell lines and the production of extracellular matrix hydrogels. These hydrogels, assuming a pivotal role in isolating cells at the single-cell level, facilitate a myriad of analyses. This study presents a novel method that seamlessly integrates CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing techniques with single-cell isolation methods in induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC) lines, utilizing the combined power of droplets and hydrogels. This innovative approach is designed to optimize clonal selection, thereby concurrently reducing costs and the time required for generating a stable genetically modified cell line. By bridging the advancements in gene editing and microfluidic technologies, our approach not only holds significant promise for the development of disease models and assays but also addresses the crucial need for efficient single-cell isolation. This integration contributes to streamlining processes, making it a transformative method with implications for enhancing the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of stable cell line generation. As we navigate the intersection of gene editing and microfluidics, our study marks a significant stride toward innovative methodologies in the dynamic landscape of cellular and molecular physiology research. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microfluidics in Biomedical Applications)
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13 pages, 2836 KiB  
Article
Numerical Modeling of Physical Cell Trapping in Microfluidic Chips
by Sara Cardona, Nima Mostafazadeh, Qiyue Luan, Jian Zhou, Zhangli Peng and Ian Papautsky
Micromachines 2023, 14(9), 1665; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi14091665 - 26 Aug 2023
Viewed by 1581
Abstract
Microfluidic methods have proven to be effective in separation and isolation of cells for a wide range of biomedical applications. Among these methods, physical trapping is a label-free isolation approach that relies on cell size as the selective phenotype to retain target cells [...] Read more.
Microfluidic methods have proven to be effective in separation and isolation of cells for a wide range of biomedical applications. Among these methods, physical trapping is a label-free isolation approach that relies on cell size as the selective phenotype to retain target cells on-chip for follow-up analysis and imaging. In silico models have been used to optimize the design of such hydrodynamic traps and to investigate cancer cell transmigration through narrow constrictions. While most studies focus on computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis of flow over cells and/or pillar traps, a quantitative analysis of mechanical interaction between cells and trapping units is missing. The existing literature centers on longitudinally extended geometries (e.g., micro-vessels) to understand the biological phenomenon rather than designing an effective cell trap. In this work, we aim to make an experimentally informed prediction of the critical pressure for a cell to pass through a trapping unit as a function of cell morphology and trapping unit geometry. Our findings show that a hyperelastic material model accurately captures the stress-related softening behavior observed in cancer cells passing through micro-constrictions. These findings are used to develop a model capable of predicting and extrapolating critical pressure values. The validity of the model is assessed with experimental data. Regression analysis is used to derive a mathematical framework for critical pressure. Coupled with CFD analysis, one can use this formulation to design efficient microfluidic devices for cell trapping and potentially perform downstream analysis of trapped cells. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microfluidics in Biomedical Applications)
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22 pages, 11904 KiB  
Article
Effect of Particle Migration on the Stress Field in Microfluidic Flows of Blood Analog Fluids at High Reynolds Numbers
by Finn Knüppel, Ang Sun, Frank-Hendrik Wurm, Jeanette Hussong and Benjamin Torner
Micromachines 2023, 14(8), 1494; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi14081494 - 25 Jul 2023
Viewed by 1120
Abstract
In the present paper, we investigate how the reductions in shear stresses and pressure losses in microfluidic gaps are directly linked to the local characteristics of cell-free layers (CFLs) at channel Reynolds numbers relevant to ventricular assist device (VAD) applications. For this, detailed [...] Read more.
In the present paper, we investigate how the reductions in shear stresses and pressure losses in microfluidic gaps are directly linked to the local characteristics of cell-free layers (CFLs) at channel Reynolds numbers relevant to ventricular assist device (VAD) applications. For this, detailed studies of local particle distributions of a particulate blood analog fluid are combined with wall shear stress and pressure loss measurements in two complementary set-ups with identical flow geometry, bulk Reynolds numbers and particle Reynolds numbers. For all investigated particle volume fractions of up to 5%, reductions in the stress and pressure loss were measured in comparison to a flow of an equivalent homogeneous fluid (without particles). We could explain this due to the formation of a CFL ranging from 10 to 20 μm. Variations in the channel Reynolds number between Re = 50 and 150 did not lead to measurable changes in CFL heights or stress reductions for all investigated particle volume fractions. These measurements were used to describe the complete chain of how CFL formation leads to a stress reduction, which reduces the apparent viscosity of the suspension and results in the Fåhræus–Lindqvist effect. This chain of causes was investigated for the first time for flows with high Reynolds numbers (Re∼100), representing a flow regime which can be found in the narrow gaps of a VAD. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microfluidics in Biomedical Applications)
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12 pages, 1818 KiB  
Article
Valveless On-Chip Aliquoting for Molecular Diagnosis
by Andersson A. Romero Deza, Federico Schaumburg and Claudio L. A. Berli
Micromachines 2023, 14(7), 1425; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi14071425 - 15 Jul 2023
Viewed by 1076
Abstract
The detection of nucleic acids as specific markers of infectious diseases is commonly implemented in molecular biology laboratories. The translation of these benchtop assays to a lab-on-a-chip format demands huge efforts of integration and automation. The present work is motivated by a strong [...] Read more.
The detection of nucleic acids as specific markers of infectious diseases is commonly implemented in molecular biology laboratories. The translation of these benchtop assays to a lab-on-a-chip format demands huge efforts of integration and automation. The present work is motivated by a strong requirement often posed by molecular assays that combine isothermal amplification and CRISPR/Cas-based detection: after amplification, a 2–8 microliter aliquot of the reaction products must be taken for the subsequent reaction. In order to fulfill this technical problem, we have designed and prototyped a microfluidic device that is able to meter and aliquot in the required range during the stepped assay. The operation is achieved by integrating a porous material that retains the desired amount of liquid after removing the excess reaction products, an innovative solution that avoids valving and external actuation. The prototypes were calibrated and experimentally tested to demonstrate the overall performance (general fluidics, metering, aliquoting, mixing and reaction). The proposed aliquoting method is fully compatible with additional functions, such as sample concentration or reagent storage, and could be further employed in alternative applications beyond molecular diagnosis. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microfluidics in Biomedical Applications)
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