Collaborative Research: Development of a High Speed Cell Mechanical Property Testing Cytometer

合作研究：开发高速细胞机械性能测试细胞仪

• 批准号: 0852863
• 负责人: Ralph Jimenez
• 金额: $ 26.34万
• 依托单位: University of Colorado at Boulder
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2009
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2009-05-01 至 2013-04-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0852863&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Development; Speed; Cell

Identifying a certain cell type based on a specific signature, separating cell mixtures according to cellular differences, and studying changes in a specific signature with cell environments are important techniques in biological research. While various biochemical markers of cells have been extensively used for decades, biomechanical properties such as cell stiffness are increasingly recognized as an important indicator of cell type and physiological state. The mechanical properties of cells are defined by the membrane, cytoskeleton and the volume of the cell, and are likely associated with basic characteristics including type, growth, stage of differentiation, and response to the environment. Existing mechanical characterization tools, however, can only examine a few cells at a time, severely limiting their utility and application due to the low throughput associated with the sequential isolation and probing of individual cells.Here, a high-throughput method will be developed, where optical-based mechanical ?stretching? forces are applied to cells in microfluidic devices. By the end of this 3-year project, a device capable of the rapid measurement of cell mechanical properties will be built and tested on bovine blood cells, vascular cells, and human HeLa cells. A number of broader impacts are expected including providing new research opportunities for undergraduate students, new teaching opportunities at the high-school level, and new recruitment efforts for underrepresented groups within the state of Colorado.

基于特定特征识别特定类型的细胞，根据细胞差异分离细胞混合物，以及研究特定特征随细胞环境的变化是生物学研究中的重要技术。几十年来，随着各种细胞生化指标的广泛应用，细胞刚度等生物力学特性越来越被认为是细胞类型和生理状态的重要指标。细胞的力学特性是由细胞膜、细胞骨架和细胞体积决定的，并且可能与细胞的类型、生长、分化阶段和对环境的反应等基本特征有关。然而，现有的机械表征工具一次只能检测几个细胞，由于单个细胞的顺序分离和探测相关的低通量，严重限制了它们的实用性和应用。在这里，将开发一种高通量的方法，其中基于光学的机械拉伸？力被应用于微流体装置中的细胞。在这个为期3年的项目结束时，将建立一个能够快速测量细胞力学特性的设备，并在牛血细胞、血管细胞和人类HeLa细胞上进行测试。预计将产生一些更广泛的影响，包括为本科生提供新的研究机会，为高中提供新的教学机会，以及为科罗拉多州内代表性不足的群体提供新的招聘努力。