The VersaLive platform enables microfluidic mammalian cell culture for versatile applications

Abstract

Microfluidic-based cell culture allows for precise spatio-temporal regulation of microenvironment, live cell imaging and better recapitulation of physiological conditions, while minimizing reagents’ consumption. Despite their usefulness, most microfluidic systems are designed with one specific application in mind and usually require specialized equipment and expertise for their operation. All these requirements prevent microfluidic-based cell culture to be widely adopted. Here, we designed and implemented a versatile and easy-to-use perfusion cell culture microfluidic platform for multiple applications (VersaLive) requiring only standard pipettes. Here, we showcase the multiple uses of VersaLive (e.g., time-lapse live cell imaging, immunostaining, cell recovery, cell lysis, plasmid transfection) in mammalian cell lines and primary cells. VersaLive could replace standard cell culture formats in several applications, thus decreasing costs and increasing reproducibility across laboratories. The layout, documentation and protocols are open-source and available online at https://versalive.tigem.it/.

A Photoreceptor‐Based Hydrogel with Red Light‐Responsive Reversible Sol‐Gel Transition as Transient Cellular Matrix

“…[22] Their combination with in vitro cell culture enables unprecedented user-defined control in research ranging from cell migration and cell-cell interaction studies to single cell genomics. [57][58][59][60][61][62] By integrating our newly developed hydrogel into a microfluidic chip, we aimed to optically control the formation of geometrically confined hydrogels to encapsulate and subsequently deposit mammalian cells with high spatiotemporal precision inside the chip.…”

Engineering Heterogeneous Tumor Models for Biomedical Applications

“…Among emerging tech-nologies, microfluidics holds enormous potential for precise control over cell behavior and organization at the microscale level. [275][276][277][278][279][280][281][282][283][284][285][286] In tumor tissue engineering, microfluidic chips have been employed for arranging vascular networks in collaboration with tumor cells. [287][288][289] With high spatiotemporal resolution, Hassell et al studied the morphology of transmigrating tumor cells and related endothelial cells in vitro (Figure 18a,b).…”

“…Among emerging technologies, microfluidics holds enormous potential for precise control over cell behavior and organization at the microscale level. [ 275–286 ] In tumor tissue engineering, microfluidic chips have been employed for arranging vascular networks in collaboration with tumor cells. [ 287–289 ] With high spatiotemporal resolution, Hassell et al.…”

A magnetically controlled microfluidic device for concentration dependent in vitro testing of anticancer drug

“…Similar and suitable physiological conditions found in vivo can be created in microfluidic devices by naturally culturing several cell types with better control over the chemical and physical environment, experimental automation, and reduced functional samples. 13,14 To study the pharmacology of drug candidates, three-dimensional (3D) cell culture-onchips 15 offer the chance to partially or entirely replace costly animal trials fraught with moral dilemmas. Such promising devices provide an opportunity to real-time monitor the toxic effects and dissemination of medications in order to forecast in vivo efficacy in a fluidic environment.…”