Planar lipid bilayer reconstitution with a micro-fluidic system.
A planar lipid bilayer which is widely used for the electrophysiological study of membrane proteins in laboratories is reconstituted using a micro-fluidic system, in a manner that is suitable for automated processing. We fabricated micro-channels on both sides of the substrate, which are connected through a 100-200 microm aperture, and showed that the bilayer can be formed at the aperture by flowing the lipid solution and buffer, alternately. Parylene coating is found to be suitable for both bilayer formation and electric noise reduction. Future applications include a high-sensitivity ion sensor chip and a high-throughput drug screening device.
Center for International Research on Micromechatronics, Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo, 4-6-1 Komaba, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, Japan. hsuzuki@iis.u-tokyo.ac.jp.
Hiroaki
H
Suzuki
Kazuhito
K
Tabata
Yasuyuki
Y
Kato-Yamada
Hiroyuki
H
Noji
Shoji
S
Takeuchi
D004563:Electrochemistry; D004566:Electrodes; D008051:Lipid Bilayers; D044085:Microfluidics / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods*; D018408:Patch-Clamp Techniques; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry; D014992:Xylenes / Q000737:chemistry
D008051:Lipid Bilayers; D011108:Polymers; D014992:Xylenes; C011055:parylene