Micro in-focal cell stretching platform with parallel programmable control

Abstract

This paper reports a micro-scale programmable cell stretching platform. The platform keeps the cell monolayer in the microscopic focal plane throughout the stretching process allowing real-time imaging of the cells with magnifications up to 40×, and post-stretching optical analysis with magnification up to 100×. The device consists of highly parallelized stretching array of 15 units with reconfigurable strains. Each unit was an assembly of three elastomeric layers and a bottom glass cover-slip. In the middle of the assembly, an 8 μm thick membrane is used as the stretching substrate for the cells. A programmable pneumatic control system provides actuation. The stretching of the membrane is measured in situ using µPIV technique. The results show that a uniform strain of above 60% can be achieved. Preliminary cell stretching experiments in this device with 5 different cell lines were conducted. Both the acute cell deformation and chronic morphological changes in response to the cyclic strain have confirmed the functionality of this platform.