A polymeric cell stretching device for real-time imaging with optical microscopy

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Author(s)
Huang, Yuli
Nam-Trung, Nguyen
Griffith University Author(s)
Year published
2013
Metadata
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This paper reports the design, fabrication and characterization of a cell stretching device based on the side stretching approach. Numerical simulation using finite element method provides a guideline for optimizing the geometry and maximizing the output strain of the stretched membrane. An unique PDMS-based micro fabrication process was developed for obtaining high parallelization, well controlled membrane thickness and an ultra-thin bottom layer that is crucial for the use with confocal microscopes. The stretching experiments are fully automated with both device actuation and image acquisition. A programmable pneumatic ...
View more >This paper reports the design, fabrication and characterization of a cell stretching device based on the side stretching approach. Numerical simulation using finite element method provides a guideline for optimizing the geometry and maximizing the output strain of the stretched membrane. An unique PDMS-based micro fabrication process was developed for obtaining high parallelization, well controlled membrane thickness and an ultra-thin bottom layer that is crucial for the use with confocal microscopes. The stretching experiments are fully automated with both device actuation and image acquisition. A programmable pneumatic control system was built for simultaneous driving of 24 stretching arrays. The actuation signals are synchronized with the image acquisition system to obtain time-lapse recording of cells grown on the stretched membrane. Experimental results verified the characteristics predicted by the simulation. A platform with 15 stretching units was integrated on a standard 24 mm נ50 mm glass slide. Each unit can achieve a maximum strain of more than 60 %. The platform was tested for cell growth under cyclic stretching. The preliminary results show that the device is compatible with all standard microscopes.
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View more >This paper reports the design, fabrication and characterization of a cell stretching device based on the side stretching approach. Numerical simulation using finite element method provides a guideline for optimizing the geometry and maximizing the output strain of the stretched membrane. An unique PDMS-based micro fabrication process was developed for obtaining high parallelization, well controlled membrane thickness and an ultra-thin bottom layer that is crucial for the use with confocal microscopes. The stretching experiments are fully automated with both device actuation and image acquisition. A programmable pneumatic control system was built for simultaneous driving of 24 stretching arrays. The actuation signals are synchronized with the image acquisition system to obtain time-lapse recording of cells grown on the stretched membrane. Experimental results verified the characteristics predicted by the simulation. A platform with 15 stretching units was integrated on a standard 24 mm נ50 mm glass slide. Each unit can achieve a maximum strain of more than 60 %. The platform was tested for cell growth under cyclic stretching. The preliminary results show that the device is compatible with all standard microscopes.
View less >
Journal Title
Biomedical Microdevices
Volume
15
Issue
6
Copyright Statement
© 2013 Springer. This is an electronic version of an article published in Biomedical Microdevices, Vol. 15(6), pp. 1043-1054, 2013. Biomedical Microdevices is available online at: http://link.springer.com/ with the open URL of your article.
Subject
Signal transduction
Biomedical engineering
Materials engineering
Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS)