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Proceedings of the National Academy of... Sep 2022Viscous streaming refers to the rectified, steady flows that emerge when a liquid oscillates around an immersed microfeature. Relevant to microfluidics, the resulting...
Viscous streaming refers to the rectified, steady flows that emerge when a liquid oscillates around an immersed microfeature. Relevant to microfluidics, the resulting local, strong inertial effects allow manipulation of fluid and particles effectively, within short time scales and compact footprints. Nonetheless, practically, viscous streaming has been stymied by a narrow set of achievable flow topologies, limiting scope and application. Here, by moving away from classically employed microfeatures of uniform curvature, we experimentally show how multicurvature designs, computationally obtained, give rise, instead, to rich flow repertoires. The potential utility of these flows is then illustrated in compact, robust, and tunable devices for enhanced manipulation, filtering, and separation of both synthetic and biological particles. Overall, our mixed computational/experimental approach expands the scope of viscous streaming application, with opportunities in manufacturing, environment, health, and medicine, from particle self-assembly to microplastics removal.
Topics: Chemistry Techniques, Analytical; Computer Simulation; Microfluidics; Viscosity
PubMed: 36037347
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2120538119 -
Sports Medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) Nov 2018Quantifying the peak match demands within the football codes is useful for the appropriate prescription of external training load. Wearable microtechnology devices can...
BACKGROUND
Quantifying the peak match demands within the football codes is useful for the appropriate prescription of external training load. Wearable microtechnology devices can be used to identify the peak match demands, although various methodologies exist at present.
OBJECTIVES
This systematic review aimed to identify the methodologies and microtechnology-derived variables used to determine the peak match demands, and to summarise current data on the peak match demands in the football codes.
METHODS
A systematic search of electronic databases was performed from earliest record to May 2018; keywords relating to microtechnology, peak match demands and football codes were used.
RESULTS
Twenty-seven studies met the eligibility criteria. Six football codes were reported: rugby league (n = 7), rugby union (n = 5), rugby sevens (n = 4), soccer (n = 6), Australian Football (n = 2) and Gaelic Football (n = 3). Three methodologies were identified: moving averages, segmental and 'ball in play'. The moving averages is the most commonly used (63%) and superior method, identifying higher peak demands than other methods. The most commonly used variables were relative distance covered (63%) and external load in specified speed zones (57%).
CONCLUSION
This systematic review has identified moving averages to be the most appropriate method for identifying the peak match demands in the football codes. Practitioners and researchers should choose the most relevant duration-specific period and microtechnology-derived variable for their specific needs. The code specific peak match demands revealed can be used for the prescription of conditioning drills and training intensity.
Topics: Football; Geographic Information Systems; Humans; Microtechnology; Soccer; Workload
PubMed: 30088218
DOI: 10.1007/s40279-018-0965-6 -
International Journal of Molecular... Mar 2020The concept of three-dimensional (3D) cell culture has been proposed to maintain cellular morphology and function as in vivo. Among different approaches for 3D cell... (Review)
Review
The concept of three-dimensional (3D) cell culture has been proposed to maintain cellular morphology and function as in vivo. Among different approaches for 3D cell culture, microcarrier technology provides a promising tool for cell adhesion, proliferation, and cellular interactions in 3D space mimicking the in vivo microenvironment. In particular, microcarriers based on biopolymers have been widely investigated because of their superior biocompatibility and biodegradability. Moreover, through bottom-up assembly, microcarriers have opened a bright door for fabricating engineered tissues, which is one of the cutting-edge topics in tissue engineering and regeneration medicine. This review takes an in-depth look into the recent advancements of microcarriers based on biopolymers-especially polysaccharides such as chitosan, chitin, cellulose, hyaluronic acid, alginate, and laminarin-for 3D cell culture and the fabrication of engineered tissues based on them. The current limitations and potential strategies were also discussed to shed some light on future directions.
Topics: Biopolymers; Cell Adhesion; Cell Culture Techniques; Cell Proliferation; Cells, Cultured; Humans; Microtechnology; Tissue Engineering
PubMed: 32164316
DOI: 10.3390/ijms21051895 -
Molecular Biotechnology Mar 2024Thanks to recent and continuing technological innovations, modern microfluidic systems are increasingly offering researchers working across all fields of biotechnology... (Review)
Review
Thanks to recent and continuing technological innovations, modern microfluidic systems are increasingly offering researchers working across all fields of biotechnology exciting new possibilities (especially with respect to facilitating high throughput analysis, portability, and parallelization). The advantages offered by microfluidic devices-namely, the substantially lowered chemical and sample consumption they require, the increased energy and mass transfer they offer, and their comparatively small size-can potentially be leveraged in every sub-field of biotechnology. However, to date, most of the reported devices have been deployed in furtherance of healthcare, pharmaceutical, and/or industrial applications. In this review, we consider examples of microfluidic and miniaturized systems across biotechnology sub-fields. In this context, we point out the advantages of microfluidics for various applications and highlight the common features of devices and the potential for transferability to other application areas. This will provide incentives for increased collaboration between researchers from different disciplines in the field of biotechnology.
Topics: Microfluidics; Biotechnology
PubMed: 36515858
DOI: 10.1007/s12033-022-00626-6 -
Medecine Sciences : M/S Jan 2017Additive manufacturing covers a number of fashionable technologies that attract the interest of researchers in biomaterials and tissue engineering. Additive... (Review)
Review
Additive manufacturing covers a number of fashionable technologies that attract the interest of researchers in biomaterials and tissue engineering. Additive manufacturing applied to regenerative medicine covers two main areas: 3D printing and biofabrication. If 3D printing has penetrated the world of regenerative medicine, bioassembly and bioimprinting are still in their infancy. The objective of this paper is to make a non-exhaustive review of these different complementary aspects of additive manufacturing in restorative and regenerative medicine or for tissue engineering.
Topics: Bioprinting; Humans; Microtechnology; Models, Anatomic; Printing, Three-Dimensional; Regenerative Medicine; Tissue Engineering; Tissue Scaffolds
PubMed: 28120756
DOI: 10.1051/medsci/20173301009 -
Biosensors & Bioelectronics Oct 2023Miniaturization is the trend to manufacture ever smaller devices and this process requires knowledge, experience, understanding of materials, manufacturing techniques... (Review)
Review
Miniaturization is the trend to manufacture ever smaller devices and this process requires knowledge, experience, understanding of materials, manufacturing techniques and scaling laws. The fabrication techniques used in semiconductor industry deliver an exceptionally high yield of devices and provide a well-established platform. Today, these miniaturized devices are manufactured with high reproducibility, design flexibility, scalability and multiplexed features to be used in several applications including micro-, nano-fluidics, implantable chips, diagnostics/biosensors and neural probes. We here provide a review on the microfabricated devices used for biology driven science. We will describe the ubiquity of the use of micro-nanofabrication techniques in biology and biotechnology through the fabrication of high-aspect-ratio devices for cell sensing applications, intracellular devices, probes developed for neuroscience-neurotechnology and biosensing of the certain biomarkers. Recently, the research on micro and nanodevices for biology has been progressing rapidly. While the understanding of the unknown biological fields -such as human brain- has been requiring more research with advanced materials and devices, the development protocols of desired devices has been advancing in parallel, which finally meets with some of the requirements of biological sciences. This is a very exciting field and we aim to highlight the impact of micro-nanotechnologies that can shed light on complex biological questions and needs.
Topics: Humans; Microtechnology; Silicon; Reproducibility of Results; Biosensing Techniques; Biology
PubMed: 37481868
DOI: 10.1016/j.bios.2023.115503 -
Theranostics 2023Micro/nanomotors are containers that pass through liquid media and carry cargo. Because they are tiny, micro/nanomotors exhibit excellent potential for biosensing and... (Review)
Review
Micro/nanomotors are containers that pass through liquid media and carry cargo. Because they are tiny, micro/nanomotors exhibit excellent potential for biosensing and disease treatment applications. However, their size also makes overcoming random Brownian forces very challenging for micro/nanomotors moving on targets. Additionally, to achieve desired practical applications, the expensive materials, short lifetimes, poor biocompatibility, complex preparation methods, and side effects of micro/nanomotors must be addressed, and potential adverse effects must be evaluated both and in practical applications. This has led to the continuous development of key materials for driving micro/nanomotors. In this work, we review the working principles of micro/nanomotors. Metallic and nonmetallic nanocomplexes, enzymes, and living cells are explored as key materials for driving micro/nanomotors. We also consider the effects of exogenous stimulations and endogenous substance conditions on micro/nanomotor motions. The discussion focuses on micro/nanomotor applications in biosensing, treating cancer and gynecological diseases, and assisted fertilization. By addressing micro/nanomotor shortcomings, we propose directions for further developing and applying micro/nanomotors.
Topics: Biosensing Techniques; Microtechnology; Nanotechnology
PubMed: 37284438
DOI: 10.7150/thno.81845 -
PloS One 2021Point-of-care (PoC) testing of platelet count (PLT) provides real-time data for rapid decision making. The goal of this study is to evaluate the accuracy and precision...
BACKGROUND
Point-of-care (PoC) testing of platelet count (PLT) provides real-time data for rapid decision making. The goal of this study is to evaluate the accuracy and precision of platelet counting using a new microvolume (8 μL), absolute counting, 1.5 kg cytometry-based blood analyzer, the rHEALTH ONE (rHEALTH) in comparison with the International Society of Laboratory Hematology (ISLH) platelet method, which uses a cytometer and an impedance analyzer.
METHODS
Inclusion eligibility were healthy adults (M/F) ages 18-80 for donation of fingerprick and venous blood samples. Samples were from a random N = 31 volunteers from a single U.S. site. Samples were serially diluted to test thrombocytopenic ranges. Interfering substances and conditions were tested, including RBC fragments, platelet fragments, cholesterol, triglycerides, lipids, anti-platelet antibodies, and temperature.
RESULTS
The concordance between the rHEALTH and ISLH methods had a slope = 1.030 and R2 = 0.9684. The rHEALTH method showed a correlation between capillary and venous blood samples (slope = 0.9514 and R2 = 0.9684). Certain interferents changed platelet recovery: RBC fragments and anti-platelet antibodies with the ISLH method; platelet fragments and anti-platelet antibodies on the rHEALTH; and RBC fragments, platelets fragments, triglycerides and LDL on the clinical impedance analyzer. The rHEALTH's precision ranged from 3.1-8.0%, and the ISLH from 1.0-10.5%.
CONCLUSIONS
The rHEALTH method provides similar results with the reference method and good correlation between adult capillary and venous blood samples. This demonstrates the ability of the rHEALTH to provide point-of-care assessment of normal and thrombocytopenic platelet counts from fingerprick blood with high precision and limited interferences.
Topics: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Biological Assay; Blood Specimen Collection; Capillaries; Flow Cytometry; Humans; Microtechnology; Middle Aged; Platelet Count; Point-of-Care Systems; Young Adult
PubMed: 34437590
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0256423 -
Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) Apr 2021Digital microfluidics (DMF) devices enable precise manipulation of small liquid volumes in point-of-care testing. A printed circuit board (PCB) substrate is commonly...
Digital microfluidics (DMF) devices enable precise manipulation of small liquid volumes in point-of-care testing. A printed circuit board (PCB) substrate is commonly utilized to build DMF devices. However, inkjet printing can be used to fabricate DMF circuits, providing a less expensive alternative to PCB-based DMF designs while enabling more rapid design iteration cycles. We demonstrate the cleanroom-free fabrication process of a low-cost inkjet-printed DMF circuit. We compare Kapton and polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) as dielectric coatings by measuring the minimal droplet actuation voltage for a range of actuation frequencies. A minimum actuation voltage of 5.6 V was required for droplet movement with the PMMA layer thickness of 0.2 μm and a hydrophobic layer of 0.17 μm. Significant issues with PMMA dielectric breakdown were observed at actuation voltages above 10 V. In comparison, devices that utilized Kapton were found to be more robust, even at an actuation voltage up to 100 V.
Topics: Lab-On-A-Chip Devices; Microfluidics
PubMed: 33924812
DOI: 10.3390/s21093064 -
Drug Delivery Dec 2022Microfluidics is used to manipulate fluid flow in micro-channels to fabricate drug delivery vesicles in a uniform tunable size. Thanks to their designs, microfluidic... (Review)
Review
Microfluidics is used to manipulate fluid flow in micro-channels to fabricate drug delivery vesicles in a uniform tunable size. Thanks to their designs, microfluidic technology provides an alternative and versatile platform over traditional formulation methods of nanoparticles. Understanding the factors that affect the formulation of nanoparticles can guide the proper selection of microfluidic design and the operating parameters aiming at producing nanoparticles with reproducible properties. This review introduces the microfluidic systems' continuous flow (single-phase) and segmented flow (multiphase) and their different mixing parameters and mechanisms. Furthermore, microfluidic approaches for efficient production of nanoparticles as surface modification, anti-fouling, and post-microfluidic treatment are summarized. The review sheds light on the used microfluidic systems and operation parameters applied to prepare and fine-tune nanoparticles like lipid, poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA)-based nanoparticles as well as cross-linked nanoparticles. The approaches for scale-up production using microfluidics for clinical or industrial use are also highlighted. Furthermore, the use of microfluidics in preparing novel micro/nanofluidic drug delivery systems is presented. In conclusion, the characteristic vital features of microfluidics offer the ability to develop precise and efficient drug delivery nanoparticles.
Topics: Microfluidics; Nanoparticles; Technology, Pharmaceutical
PubMed: 35612293
DOI: 10.1080/10717544.2022.2069878