IDBR: Controlling Oxygen in Standard Multiwell Plates with a Microfabricated Add-on

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Oxygen is a key metabolic variable that influences many different biological phenomena. However, current tools to probe this variable are inefficient and have not changed since the dawn of cell culture techniques. Yet, as oxygen is increasingly implicated in many signaling pathways, enabling a simple tool to explore this would greatly facilitate these investigations and accelerate scientific discovery. In this project, a platform to independently control local gas concentrations within each well of a multiwell plate will be developed and optimized. The platform will consist of a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) insert that will nest into a standard multiwell plate. The insert is a passive network with a gas permeable membrane aimed to deliver gas to adherent cell cultures in multiwell plates. The insert will act as a sink or source of oxygen depending on the concentration of the oxygen in the microchannels and will be immersed in the cell media of the well. The gas will be delivered to the cell monolayer through simple diffusion of oxygen across a PDMS membrane and dissolve into the culture media of the multiwell plate. This close spacing between the PDMS membrane and cell monolayer allows for rapid diffusion to impose steady state gradients of oxygen across the well within minutes. The device will not only enable control of oxygen gradients, but will lead to a whole class of devices that will allow researchers to precisely control the microenvironment in multiwell plates to address a variety of The platform has potential to facilitate new and exciting experiments not possible with current techniques, by replicating the oxygen gradients that occur in living systems (in vivo) in a laboratory model (in vitro) accessible to any standard cell biology lab. The result would have a huge impact across many fields.To develop interest in science and engineering, underrepresented minority elementary students will be exposed to interactive laboratory activities at the University of Illinois at Chicago. At risk elementary school students will be targeted by working with the Girl Scouts of Chicago to provide positive experiences with science and engineering. Program evaluation will include both formative feedback, which will allow us to adjust our methods as we learn from the activities, and a summative appraisal of whether the stated goals have been met.