Elucidating in vitro cell-cell interaction using a microfluidic coculture system.
This work presents a novel microfluidic coculture system that improves the accuracy of evaluating the interaction between cocultured cell types. A microfluidic coculture chip, fabricated by CO(2) laser direct-writing on polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), was designed to separate two cell types using a microchannel, while permitting transfer of cellular media. The system has two up-stream wells and five down-stream wells. As an example, released inflammatory cytokines (e.g., interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha)), activated in up-stream macrophages, flow through a microfluidic mixing system, generating linear concentration gradients in down-stream wells and inducing down-stream osteoblasts to release prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), a well-known bone resorption marker. Osteoblast viability was assessed by 3-[4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. This novel coculture system can be applied to evaluate cell-cell interaction while physically separating interacting cells.
Research Center for Applied Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taiwan.
Cheng-Wey
CW
Wei
Ji-Yen
JY
Cheng
Tai-Horng
TH
Young
D002450:Cell Communication / Q000502:physiology*; D002460:Cell Line; D018920:Coculture Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D004867:Equipment Design; D019544:Equipment Failure Analysis; D017022:Flow Injection Analysis / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D007375:Interleukin-1 / Q000378:metabolism*; D008264:Macrophages / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D046210:Microfluidic Analytical Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D010006:Osteoblasts / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000378:metabolism*
D007375:Interleukin-1; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha