Nanoliter Fluid Handling for Microbiology Via Levitated Magnetic Microrobots
Nanoliter Fluid Handling for Microbiology Via Levitated Magnetic Microrobots
复制标题
DOI：
10.1109/lra.2019.2893682
复制
发表时间：
2019-04-01
影响因子：
5.2
通讯作者：
Kumar, Vijay
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Hunter, Elizabeth E.;Steager, Edward B.;Kumar, Vijay
微生物环境是微型机器人的一个明确的应用领域，但将生化线索定向传递到特定的细胞或组织仍然是一个重大挑战。构成组织的大量细胞使这一挑战变得更加复杂。多机器人系统的发展一直受到限制，因为在有限的空间中，多个机器人的离散操作面临挑战。在这里，我们演示了使用多个直径悬浮式机器人以与光学显微镜兼容的方式运送溶解在液体中的生物化学物质。具体地说，我们展示了荧光分子在水凝胶中的装载、运输和扩散释放，以及用信号分子诱导合成工程细菌细胞。该平台在发育生物学、组织工程和合成生物学等领域具有潜在的影响力和实用性。
Microbiological environments are a clear application area for microscale robotics, but targeted delivery of biochemical cues to particular cells or tissues remains a significant challenge. This challenge is compounded by the sheer number of cells that compose tissues. Multirobot system development has been limited due to challenges in discrete operation of several robots in a confined space. Here, we demonstrate the use of multiple diamagnetically levitated robots for delivering biochemicals dissolved in liquid in a manner compatible with light microscopy. Specifically, we show loading, transport, and diffusive release of fluorescent molecules in hydrogels with microscale precision, as well as induction of synthetically engineered bacterial cells with signaling molecules. This platform holds potential for impact and utility in fields, such as developmental biology, tissue engineering, and synthetic biology.