eva‎luation of hypoxia and angiogenesis in cancerous tumors using a droplet-based microfluidic device

10/22/2023 12:00:00 AM

Today, with the integration of medical science into various fields, different solutions are being provided for treating diseases. The study of cancer and its treatment methods has been the focus of researchers for the past few decades. Various methods can be used to study cancer cells, and cell culture is a crucial aspect of medicinal and therapeutic studies. In this regard, in vitro studies have several advantages over in vivo studies. Cells can be cultivated in both 2D and 3D, and each method has unique benefits. The 3D culture involves building a scaffold for cells, allowing them to be in contact with the environment and other cells in all directions. In this project, a microfluidic microchip for producing cell spheroids was designed and fabricated using the soft photolithography process, and various studies were conducted on it. Initially, the drop production process revealed that drops of various sizes can be produced by changing the capillary number and flow rates according to the dimensions of the microchip channel. The drops were formed from deionized water in a bed of paraffin oil with Span 80. Additionally, changing the type of material, particularly the continuous phase, can affect the droplet size. By altering the type of oil and using mineral oil and olive oil alongside paraffin oil, it was observed that changing the dimensions and sizes of the droplets formed due to changing the flow rate and capillarity number is the same in all oils. In the continuation, alginate-based droplets produced using microchips were eva‎luated for their dimensional and size changes, as well as their sphericity, considering the changes in flow rate. These droplets also possessed a specific porosity, providing a suitable substrate for three-dimensional cell culture. The results showed that cells could be successfully cultured inside calcium alginate microgels to facilitate cellular studies.

سرطان روي تراشه , ميكروفلويديك , فوتوليتوگرافي , توليد قطره , هيدروژل

Cancer-On-a-Chip , Microfluidics , Photolithography , drop production , Hydrogel

Koorosh Aieneh

Seyed Mostafa Hosseinalipoor