Review
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Renata Maia, Violeta Carvalho, Rui Lima, Graca Minas, Raquel O. Rodrigues
Summary: This systematic review summarizes the recent progress in the use of microneedles (MNs) in biomedical applications, including drug delivery, biomarker detection, and their potential integration with microfluidic devices. Although MNs have been extensively utilized in lab-on-a-chip platforms, recent studies have also explored their applicability in organ-on-a-chip models. Overall, the presence of MNs in advanced microfluidic devices offers simplified drug delivery, microinjection, and biomarker detection through integrated biosensors, enabling real-time monitoring of various biomarkers in lab- and organ-on-a-chip platforms.
Review
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Ghazal Shabestani Monfared, Peter Ertl, Mario Rothbauer
Summary: Cutaneous wound healing is a complex process involving cell communication events and cell migration to achieve wound closure. Microfluidic and lab-on-a-chip technologies have improved in vitro wound healing assays to create more reliable models resembling the in vivo wound microenvironment.
Article
Computer Science, Theory & Methods
Xing Huang, Tsung-Yi Ho, Wenzhong Guo, Bing Li, Krishnendu Chakrabarty, Ulf Schlichtmann
Summary: Flow-based microfluidic biochips are increasingly utilized in biology and biochemistry for laboratory procedures, with advancements in manufacturing technology allowing for integration of thousands of microvalves into a small platform. Computer-aided design (CAD) in the past decade has attracted research interest for automation of biochip design, enabling designers to explore new chip architectures and simplify complex tasks. Key trends and directions for future research focus on maximizing the potential of microfluidics to advance the industry.
ACM COMPUTING SURVEYS
(2021)
Review
Chemistry, Analytical
Federico Sala, Carlotta Ficorella, Roberto Osellame, Josef A. Kaes, Rebeca Martinez Vazquez
Summary: Understanding cell migration is crucial for unraveling physiological phenomena and predicting pathologies like cancer metastasis. Microfluidic devices have been used to investigate cellular migration response by engineering mechanical and spatial stimuli. This review discusses the existing technologies, such as soft lithography and femtosecond laser micromachining, used in microfluidic cellular migration assays. It highlights the different geometrical configurations employed and envisions future developments in in vitro migration studies under spatial confinement in microfluidic devices.
Article
Engineering, Electrical & Electronic
Samith Hettiarachchi, Gehan Melroy, Amith Mudugamuwa, Peshan Sampath, Charith Premachandra, Ranjith Amarasinghe, Van Dau
Summary: This paper discusses the modeling, simulation, and experimentation of an active droplet generator used in LOC devices, focusing on the key factor of droplet generation. The study found that optimized droplet contraction width and flow rate ratios are crucial for effective droplet generation. Experimental results show that droplet formation occurs within a certain range of flow rate ratios, with droplet diameter decreasing as the flow rate ratio decreases.
SENSORS AND ACTUATORS A-PHYSICAL
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Can Huang, Song- Han, Han Zhang, Arum Han
Summary: Microfluidic lab-on-a-chip systems provide cost-effective and time-efficient biological assays at a small volume scale. Dielectrophoretic (DEP)-based manipulation technologies, due to their label-free and high selectivity natures, have been extensively developed for accurate and specific cell and reagent control. This article provides a tutorial on developing DEP-based microfluidic systems, including theory, simulation, microfabrication, and applications. Possible future directions on utilizing DEP-based technologies to overcome challenges and improve microfluidic lab-on-a-chip systems are suggested.
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON BIOMEDICAL CIRCUITS AND SYSTEMS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Harry Dawson, Jinane Elias, Pascal Etienne, Sylvie Calas-Etienne
Summary: The integration of optical circuits with microfluidic lab-on-chip devices has brought about new possibilities for sample manipulation and detection at the micro-scale, particularly in bio-chemical applications. However, challenges remain due to the complexity of combining photonics with micro-fabricated systems, which limits the industrial scaling of this technology.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Adelina-Gabriela Niculescu, Cristina Chircov, Alexandra Catalina Birca, Alexandru Mihai Grumezescu
Summary: Microfluidics is an emerging field that combines principles from various disciplines to fabricate miniaturized chips with channels and chambers. These chips, made using diverse methods, can be utilized in nanoparticle preparation, cell analysis, and diagnosis, among other biomedical applications.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2021)
Review
Chemistry, Analytical
Shuaiwen Li, Zihui Chen, Feng Yang, Wanqing Yue
Summary: This article presents a review of recent progress in the integration of emerging 2D materials into LOC devices for the development of high-sensitivity biosensors, discussing the integration methods and sensing principles of both electrochemical and optical LOC biosensors. The challenges and prospects of using 2D materials in LOC biosensors are also examined.
MICROCHEMICAL JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Electrical & Electronic
Yitong Xu, Weisheng Wu, Zhongyi Zhou, Qiyi Su, Xinghui Liu, Weiwei Li, Kai Wang
Summary: We present a fully-integrated lab on a chip (LOC) that combines a digital microfluidic array, on-chip resistive heater and temperature sensor, on-chip optical sensor, and transimpedance preamplifier. The LOC is manufactured on a thin-film transistor (TFT) glass substrate, making it cost-effective and suitable for disposable point-of-care testing (POCT) applications.
IEEE ELECTRON DEVICE LETTERS
(2023)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Sabine Zips, Lukas Hiendlmeier, Lennart Jakob Konstantin Weiss, Heike Url, Tetsuhiko F. Teshima, Richard Schmid, Markus Eblenkamp, Petra Mela, Bernhard Wolfrum
Summary: The silicone-hydrogel hybrid material presented in this study is flexible, stretchable, biocompatible, and suitable for stereolithographic (SLA) printing of biomedical devices. It shows low swelling in water, easy bonding to glass substrates, and minimal cytotoxicity to various cell lines. The material's oxygen permeability, compared to other materials like PDMS and hydrogel-based resin, makes it promising for applications in cell-culture and microfluidic lab-on-a-chip technologies.
ACS APPLIED POLYMER MATERIALS
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Electrical & Electronic
Sarah E. Lu, Andrew Morris, Geraldine Clinton-Bailey, Medya Namiq, Paul C. Gow, Antony Birchill, Sebastian Steigenberger, James Wyatt, Reuben Forrester, Matthew C. Mowlem, Phillip E. Warwick
Summary: Nuclear reactor process control often relies on manual sampling and laboratory analysis for monitoring pure β-emitting radionuclides, leading to delays in data availability and response times. The development of an in situ microfluidic Lab on Chip (LoC) system with integrated detection offers a promising solution, reducing occupational exposure and monitoring costs while providing improved temporal resolution through near real-time data acquisition.
SENSORS AND ACTUATORS A-PHYSICAL
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Yu-Shih Chen, Tzu-Wei Lo, Hong-Yuan Huang, Lien-Min Li, Yi-Wen Wang, Da-Jeng Yao, Wen-Syang Hsu, Cheng-Hsien Liu
Summary: The combination of In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) and microfluidic technology offers a promising solution to infertility by enhancing the success rate of IVF and accelerating embryo growth and development. By utilizing a microfluidic embryo lab chip for co-cultivation, researchers observed faster embryo growth rates and higher blastocyst development rates compared to traditional culture methods.
SENSORS AND ACTUATORS B-CHEMICAL
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Multidisciplinary
Agnieszka Krakos (Podwin), Anna Janicka, Justyna Molska, Maciej Zawis, Danylo Lizanets, Tomasz Bialecki, Bartosz Gawron, Tomasz Suchocki
Summary: This paper presents a lab-on-a-chip (LOC) for cellular studies and verifies its performance through numerical simulations and biological experiments. The toxicity of jet fuels on cells was evaluated using Euglena gracilis as a bioindicator. Exhaust gas chromatography analysis showed that the concentration of the most toxic BTEX group increased about two times with the addition of HEFAtype hydrocarbons.
Review
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Cristian F. Rodriguez, Valentina Andrade-Perez, Maria Camila Vargas, Andres Mantilla-Orozco, Johann F. Osma, Luis H. Reyes, Juan C. Cruz
Summary: Microfluidics is an interdisciplinary field that combines science and engineering to design and create devices that manipulate small volumes of fluids. The main goal is to achieve precision and accuracy while minimizing the use of reagents and equipment. This article explores inexpensive alternatives for the development of microfluidic devices, such as polymers, paper, and hydrogels, as well as various manufacturing techniques including soft lithography, laser plotting, and 3D printing. The selection of materials and techniques depends on the specific requirements and applications of each device. The article provides a comprehensive overview of the alternatives for low-cost microfluidic devices, which can be utilized in pharmaceutical, chemical, food, and biomedical industries.
FRONTIERS IN BIOENGINEERING AND BIOTECHNOLOGY
(2023)
