Controlled mixing in microfluidic systems using bacterial chemotaxis.
We demonstrate the use of Escherichia coli and their chemotactic characteristics to enhance mixing in a microchannel in a controlled and bi-directional manner. The presence of a chemoattractant in one arm of a three-junction microchannel results in an asymmetric increase in the effective diffusion coefficient of extremely high molecular weight TMR-Dextran (MW 2 000 000), which rises linearly with the concentration of attractant from a baseline value of 8-42 microm(2)/s at a concentration of 0.1 M. The response to a repellent is similar, with the opposite bias.
Kim
Min Jun
MJ
Department of Mechanical Engineering & Mechanics, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA. minjun.kim@drexel.edu
Breuer
Kenneth S
KS
D018407:Bacterial Physiological Phenomena; D002630:Chemotactic Factors; D002633:Chemotaxis; D003911:Dextrans; D004058:Diffusion; D004926:Escherichia coli; D005407:Flagella; D044085:Microfluidics / Q000379:methods*; D020409:Molecular Motor Proteins
D002630:Chemotactic Factors; D003911:Dextrans; D020409:Molecular Motor Proteins