Femtosecond laser nanoaxotomy lab-on-a-chip for in vivo nerve regeneration studies.
A thorough understanding of nerve regeneration in Caenorhabditis elegans requires performing femtosecond laser nanoaxotomy while minimally affecting the worm. We present a microfluidic device that fulfills such criteria and can easily be automated to enable high-throughput genetic and pharmacological screenings. Using the 'nanoaxotomy' chip, we discovered that axonal regeneration occurs much faster than previously described, and notably, the distal fragment of the severed axon regrows in the absence of anesthetics.
Guo
Samuel X
SX
Department of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin, 204 E. Dean Keeton Street, Austin, Texas 78712, USA.
Bourgeois
Frederic
F
Chokshi
Trushal
T
Durr
Nicholas J
NJ
Hilliard
Massimo A
MA
Chronis
Nikos
N
Ben-Yakar
Adela
A
D000818:Animals; D001369:Axons / Q000473:pathology*; D019771:Axotomy / Q000379:methods*; D001522:Behavior, Animal; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans; D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D004867:Equipment Design; D046210:Microfluidic Analytical Techniques; D044085:Microfluidics; D008954:Models, Biological; D036103:Nanotechnology / Q000379:methods*; D009416:Nerve Regeneration; D013997:Time Factors
D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins