Dielectrophoretic deformation of breast cancer cells for lab on a chip applications

This paper presents the development and experimental analysis of a curved microelectrode platform for the DEP deformation of breast cancer cells (MDA-MB-231). The platform is composed of arrays of curved DEP microelectrodes which are patterned onto a glass slide and samples containing MDA-MB-231 cells are pipetted onto the platform's surface. Finite element method is utilised to characterise the electric field gradient and DEP field. The performance of the system is assessed with MDA-MB-231 cells in a low conductivity 1% DMEM suspending medium. We applied sinusoidal wave AC potential at peak to peak voltages of 2, 5, and 10 V_pp at both 10 kHz and 50 MHz. We observed cell blebbing and cell shrinkage and analyzed the percentage of shrinkage of the cells. The experiments demonstrated higher percentage of cell shrinkage when cells are exposed to higher frequency and peak to peak voltage electric field.

Fluid flow characteristics within an oscillating lower spherical surface and a stationary concentric upper surface for application to the artificial hip joint

The synovial fluid motion in an artificial hip joint is important in understanding the thermo-fluids effects that can affect the reliability of the joint, although it is difficult to be studied theoretically, as the modelling involves the viscous fluid interacting with a moving surface. A new analytical solution has been derived for the maximum induced fluid motion within a spherical gap with an oscillating lower surface and a stationary upper surface, assuming one-dimensional incompressible laminar Newtonian flow with constant properties, and using the Navier-Stokes equation. The resulting time-dependent motion is analysed in terms of two dimensionless parameters R and β, which are functions of geometry, fluid properties and the oscillation rate. The model is then applied to the conditions of the synovial fluid enclosed in the artificial hip joint and it is found that the motion may be described by a simpler velocity variation, whereby laying the foundation to thermal studies in the joint.

Dielectrophoresis-based microfluidic platforms for cancer diagnostics

The recent advancement of dielectrophoresis (DEP)-enabled microfluidic platforms is opening new opportunities for potential use in cancer disease diagnostics. DEP is advantageous because of its specificity, low cost, small sample volume requirement, and tuneable property for microfluidic platforms. These intrinsic advantages have made it especially suitable for developing microfluidic cancer diagnostic platforms. This review focuses on a comprehensive analysis of the recent developments of DEP enabled microfluidic platforms sorted according to the target cancer cell. Each study is critically analyzed, and the features of each platform, the performance, added functionality for clinical use, and the types of samples, used are discussed. We address the novelty of the techniques, strategies, and design configuration used in improving on existing technologies or previous studies. A summary of comparing the developmental extent of each study is made, and we conclude with a treatment of future trends and a brief summary.