Acoustic tethering of microorganisms

We show how to construct and apply a setup to acoustically tether and enable behavioral observations of individual microorganisms using simple laboratory equipment and a standard light microscope. We explore the capability of the setup with the freely swimming dinoflagellate Alexandrium minutum as study organism. We demonstrate that the setup allows us to tether cells in focus in the mid-plane of the sample chamber and make observations of individual organisms at high magnification without affecting their flagellar beat frequencies. We discuss the prospect of the method to explore appendage motion and swimming kinematics of other flagellates and ciliates.

Focusing of sub-micrometer particles and bacteria enabled by two-dimensional acoustophoresis

Handling of sub-micrometer bioparticles such as bacteria are becoming increasingly important in the biomedical field and in environmental and food analysis. As a result, there is an increased need for less labor-intensive and time-consuming handling methods. Here, an acoustophoresis-based microfluidic chip that uses ultrasound to focus sub-micrometer particles and bacteria, is presented. The ability to focus sub-micrometer bioparticles in a standing one-dimensional acoustic wave is generally limited by the acoustic-streaming-induced drag force, which becomes increasingly significant the smaller the particles are. By using two-dimensional acoustic focusing, i.e. focusing of the sub-micrometer particles both horizontally and vertically in the cross section of a microchannel, the acoustic streaming velocity field can be altered to allow focusing. Here, the focusability of E. coli and polystyrene particles as small as 0.5 μm in diameter in microchannels of square or rectangular cross sections, is demonstrated. Numerical analysis was used to determine generic transverse particle trajectories in the channels, which revealed spiral-shaped trajectories of the sub-micrometer particles towards the center of the microchannel; this was also confirmed by experimental observations. The ability to focus and enrich bacteria and other sub-micrometer bioparticles using acoustophoresis opens the research field to new microbiological applications.

Ultrasound-induced acoustophoretic motion of microparticles in three dimensions

We derive analytical expressions for the three-dimensional (3D) acoustophoretic motion of spherical microparticles in rectangular microchannels. The motion is generated by the acoustic radiation force and the acoustic streaming-induced drag force. In contrast to the classical theory of Rayleigh streaming in shallow, infinite, parallel-plate channels, our theory does include the effect of the microchannel side walls. The resulting predictions agree well with numerics and experimental measurements of the acoustophoretic motion of polystyrene spheres with nominal diameters of 0.537 and 5.33 μm. The 3D particle motion was recorded using astigmatism particle tracking velocimetry under controlled thermal and acoustic conditions in a long, straight, rectangular microchannel actuated in one of its transverse standing ultrasound-wave resonance modes with one or two half-wavelengths. The acoustic energy density is calibrated in situ based on measurements of the radiation dominated motion of large 5-μm-diameter particles, allowing for quantitative comparison between theoretical predictions and measurements of the streaming-induced motion of small 0.5-μm-diameter particles.

Current-induced membrane discharge

Possible mechanisms for overlimiting current (OLC) through aqueous ion-exchange membranes (exceeding diffusion limitation) have been debated for half a century. Flows consistent with electro-osmotic instability have recently been observed in microfluidic experiments, but the existing theory neglects chemical effects and remains to be quantitatively tested. Here, we show that charge regulation and water self-ionization can lead to OLC by "current-induced membrane discharge" (CIMD), even in the absence of fluid flow, in ion-exchange membranes much thicker than the local Debye screening length. Salt depletion leads to a large electric field resulting in a local pH shift within the membrane with the effect that the membrane discharges and loses its ion selectivity. Since salt co-ions, H(+) ions, and OH(-) ions contribute to OLC, CIMD interferes with electrodialysis (salt counterion removal) but could be exploited for current-assisted ion exchange and pH control. CIMD also suppresses the extended space charge that leads to electro-osmotic instability, so it should be reconsidered in both models and experiments on OLC.

Optimality of the Münch mechanism for translocation of sugars in plants

Plants require effective vascular systems for the transport of water and dissolved molecules between distal regions. Their survival depends on the ability to transport sugars from the leaves where they are produced to sites of active growth; a flow driven, according to the Münch hypothesis, by osmotic gradients generated by differences in sugar concentration. The length scales over which sugars are produced (Lleaf) and over which they are transported (L(stem)), as well as the radius r of the cylindrical phloem cells through which the transport takes place, vary among species over several orders of magnitude; a major unsettled question is whether the Münch transport mechanism is effective over this wide range of sizes. Optimization of translocation speed predicts a scaling relation between radius r and the characteristic lengths as r∼(Lleaf Lstem)1/3. Direct measurements using novel in vivo techniques and biomimicking microfluidic devices support this scaling relation and provide the first quantitative support for a unified mechanism of sugar translocation in plants spanning several orders of magnitude in size. The existence of a general scaling law for phloem dimensions provides a new framework for investigating the physical principles governing the morphological diversity of plants.

Selective bioparticle retention and characterization in a chip-integrated confocal ultrasonic cavity

We demonstrate selective retention and positioning of cells or other bioparticles by ultrasonic manipulation in a microfluidic expansion chamber during microfluidic perfusion. The chamber is designed as a confocal ultrasonic resonator for maximum confinement of the ultrasonic force field at the chamber center, where the cells are trapped. We investigate the resonant modes in the expansion chamber and its connecting inlet channel by theoretical modeling and experimental verification during no-flow conditions. Furthermore, by triple-frequency ultrasonic actuation during continuous microfluidic sample feeding, a set of several manipulation functions performed in series is demonstrated: sample bypass--injection--aggregation and retention--positioning. Finally, we demonstrate transillumination microscopy imaging of ultrasonically trapped COS-7 cell aggregates.

Acoustic resonances in straight micro channels: beyond the 1D-approximation

Acoustic actuation can be used to perform several tasks in microfluidic systems. In this paper, we investigate an acoustic separator through micro-PIV analysis in stop-flow mode and numerical simulations, and a good agreement between the two is found. Moreover, we demonstrate that it is not sufficient only to characterize devices in flow-through mode, since in these systems much different resonant patterns can result in similarly looking band formations. Furthermore, we conclude that extended 1D approximations of the acoustic radiation force are inadvisable, and instead, a 2D model is preferred. The results presented here provide valuable insight into the nature and functionality of acoustic microdevices, and should be useful in the interpretation and understanding of the same.

Acoustic resonances in microfluidic chips: full-image micro-PIV experiments and numerical simulations

We show that full-image micro-PIV analysis in combination with images of transient particle motion is a powerful tool for experimental studies of acoustic radiation forces and acoustic streaming in microfluidic chambers under piezo-actuation in the MHz range. The measured steady-state motion of both large 5 microm and small 1 microm particles can be understood in terms of the acoustic eigenmodes or standing ultra-sound waves in the given experimental microsystems. This interpretation is supported by numerical solutions of the corresponding acoustic wave equation.

Frequency response in surface-potential driven electrohydrodynamics

Using a Fourier approach we offer a general solution to calculations of slip velocity within the circuit description of the electrohydrodynamics in a binary electrolyte confined by a plane surface with a modulated surface potential. We consider the case with a spatially constant intrinsic surface capacitance where the net flow rate is, in general, zero while harmonic rolls as well as time-averaged vortexlike components may exist depending on the spatial symmetry and extension of the surface potential. In general, the system displays a resonance behavior at a frequency corresponding to the inverse time of the system. Different surface potentials share the common feature that the resonance frequency is inversely proportional to the characteristic length scale of the surface potential. For the asymptotic frequency dependence above resonance we find a omega(-2) power law for surface potentials with either an even or an odd symmetry. Below resonance we also find a power law omega(alpha) with alpha being positive and dependent of the properties of the surface potential. Comparing a tanh potential and a sech potential we qualitatively find the same slip velocity, but for the below-resonance frequency response the two potentials display different power-law asymptotics with alpha=1 and alpha approximately 2, respectively.

Individualized medicine - implementation of pharmacogenetic diagnostics in antidepressant drug treatment of major depressive disorders

Antidepressant drug therapy is characterized by a high rate of therapeutic failure. There is increasing evidence that genetic factors are contributing to the inter-individual variability in antidepressant drug response. Genetic variability is described in both the pharmacokinetic part of drug action as well as in pharmacodynamic structures mediating drug effects. Genetic polymorphisms in drug metabolizing enzymes are well characterized and have large effects on oral clearances or elimination half-lives of antidepressant drugs. These differences can be compensated by adapting the individual dose to genotype in addition to other factors such as gender, weight, age, liver and kidney function. On the part of drug action, genetic variability is described in molecular structures of antidepressant effects. Several studies on response of antidepressants have revealed influences of polymorphisms in neurotransmitter receptors and transporters changing sensitivity of patients to treatment with antidepressants; however, results were often contradictory. A pharmacogenomic approach to individualize antidepressant drug treatment is recommended to be based on several levels: 1) identifying and validating the candidate genes involved in drug-response; 2) providing therapeutic guidelines; and 3) developing a pharmacogenetic test-system for bedside-genotyping.