Micro-/nanofluidic device for tunable generation of a concentration gradient: application to Caenorhabditis elegans chemotaxis

作者：Wang Zhongwei; Lee Insu; Jeon Tae Joon; Kim Sun Min^*

来源：Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry, 2014, 406(11): 2679-2686.

DOI：10.1007/s00216-014-7663-5

• Micro-/nanofluidic gradient generator
• Concentration gradients
• Parallel nanochannel
• C. elegans chemotaxis

In this study, we propose a novel micro-/nanofluidic device that can generate a chemical concentration gradient using a parallel nanochannel as gradient generator. This device is easy to fabricate, showing high reproducibility. Its main feature is the multiple-nanochannel-based gradient generator, which permits the diffusion of small molecules and tunably generates concentration gradients. The nanopattern for the nanochannels can be rapidly and easily fabricated by wrinkling a diamond-like carbon thin film which is deposited on a polydimethylsiloxane substrate; the generation of the concentration gradient can be adjusted by controlling the dimensions of the nanochannels. The developed gradient generator is embedded into a microfluidic device to study chemotaxis in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, which has a highly developed chemosensory system and can detect a wide variety of chemical molecules. This device shows good performance for rapid analysis of C. elegans chemotaxis under sodium chloride stimuli.

• 出版日期2014-4