{"id":2116,"date":"2024-06-04T17:09:47","date_gmt":"2024-06-04T09:09:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dxfluidics.com\/?p=2116"},"modified":"2024-08-13T11:16:39","modified_gmt":"2024-08-13T03:16:39","slug":"%e6%b6%b2%e6%bb%b4%e5%be%ae%e6%b5%81%e6%8e%a7%e6%8a%80%e6%9c%af%e7%9a%84%e5%8f%91%e5%b1%95%e5%8f%8a%e5%ba%94%e7%94%a8","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dxfluidics.com\/en\/technical-support\/information\/2116\/%e6%b6%b2%e6%bb%b4%e5%be%ae%e6%b5%81%e6%8e%a7%e6%8a%80%e6%9c%af%e7%9a%84%e5%8f%91%e5%b1%95%e5%8f%8a%e5%ba%94%e7%94%a8\/","title":{"rendered":"Development and application of droplet microfluidic technology"},"content":{"rendered":"

Droplet Microfluidics<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

Microfluidics is a technology that allows the processing and manipulation of small amounts of liquid (10-9<\/sup>-10-18<\/sup> L) systems at the micro- and nano-scale.Microfluidics-based devices called microfluidic chips are miniaturized and integrated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Droplet microfluidics refers to the generation of discrete droplets and their manipulation by mutually incompatible multiphase fluids in microchannels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Droplets generated based on microfluidic technology have the advantages of good monodispersity, no cross-contamination, high reproducibility and so on<\/strong>, which are widely used in many disciplines, such as biology, chemistry, physics and so on, and have become an important branch in the field of microfluidics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Droplet generation method<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

There are various methods and techniques for generating droplets, which can be categorized into passive and active methods depending on whether external energy is applied during droplet generation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The passive method of droplet generation refers to the use of different microchannel structures to enable immiscible dispersed-phase and continuous-phase fluids to meet at the channel junction, and droplets of controllable size can be generated downstream of the channel junction by adjusting the channel structure, the size of the flow rate of the two phases, and the flow rate ratio.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Droplet generation process<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Depending on the channel geometry, the passive method of generating droplets can be further categorized into the T-channel method (T-junction), the flow-focusing method (flow-focusing) and the coaxial flow method (co-flow).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Compared with the T-type structure and coaxial structure, the flow-focused structure restricts the droplets to the center of the channel, avoiding the droplets from shearing with the wall, and the morphology of the droplet generation process is more stable, so it is most widely used in the study of droplet microfluidics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Active method of droplet generation refers to the control of droplet generation by locally applying external forces such as electric field force, magnetic field force and centrifugal force during droplet generation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A brief overview of the development of droplet microfluidics<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

In chip fabrication<\/strong>, microfluidic chips have undergone changes from silicon, glass, polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) to paper-based materials due to the continuous introduction of new materials and technological advances;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Research on theoretical principles<\/strong>, the application of droplet microfluidic technology has received attention, and more research on the dynamics of droplet generation in this direction has ensued, with more in-depth research and development on the principles of droplet generation, which has contributed to the development of the emerging design of microfluidic systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Applications<\/strong>, with the advancement of theory and technology, droplet microfluidics has occupied an important place in many fields, such as microreactors, tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, drug delivery, artificial cells, tumor immunotherapy and single-cell research.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Applied research based on droplet microfluidic technology<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

Cytogel microspheres<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The research on cytogel microspheres is more extensive and applied in more fields, and this paper focuses on this aspect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Preparation of Gel Microspheres<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Material<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Droplet microfluidics enables the high-throughput preparation of monodisperse droplets of controllable size, composition, and functionality that can encapsulate one or more types of cells and serve as templates for the preparation of cellular gel microspheres with specific physicochemical properties and capable of resisting shear stress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is a wide variety of hydrogel materials used for encapsulating cells, which can be categorized into two main groups:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  1. Natural polymers, such as fibrinogen and peptides, have good biocompatibility and degradability<\/strong>;<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Synthetic polymers, including polyethylene glycol (PEG), polyacrylic acid (PAA), and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), have advantages in terms of mechanical properties and controllability of biochemical signals<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Hybrid hydrogels are commonly used in practical applications, combining the advantages of both to be able to provide cells with a controlled microenvironment and the necessary anchoring sites, and to regulate the cells' life activities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Processing Methods:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    In a typical cell encapsulation process, the cell-containing hydrogel precursor solution undergoes continuous-phase shearing to form a single monodisperse droplet, which, by triggering cross-linking, forms cell-gel microspheres.<\/p>\n\n\n

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    Preparation of cytogel microspheres<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

    Depending on the hydrogel material used to encapsulate the cells, different cross-linking methods were used to prepare the cell gel microspheres, which mainly included photocross-linking, ionic cross-linking and temperature-induced cross-linking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Background on the application of cytogel microspheres<\/h3>\n\n\n\n