title: A portable chemotaxis platform for short and long term analysis.
abstract: Flow-based microfluidic systems have been widely utilized for cell migration studies given their ability to generate versatile and precisely defined chemical gradients and to permit direct visualization of migrating cells. Nonetheless, the general need for bulky peripherals such as mechanical pumps and tubing and the complicated setup procedures significantly limit the widespread use of these microfluidic systems for cell migration studies. Here we present a simple method to power microfluidic devices for chemotaxis assays using the commercially available ALZET® osmotic pumps. Specifically, we developed a standalone chemotaxis platform that has the same footprint as a multiwell plate and can generate well-defined, stable chemical gradients continuously for up to 7 days. Using this platform, we validated the short-term (24 hours) and long-term (72 hours) concentration dependent PDGF-BB chemotaxis response of human bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells.
authors.affiliation: Division of Biomedical Engineering, Department of Medicine, Center for Regenerative Therapeutics, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Harvard-MIT, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.
authors.forename: Chenjie
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Yuk Kee C
authors.initials: YK
authors.lastname: Poh
authors.forename: Isaac
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Roes
authors.forename: Eoin D
authors.initials: ED
authors.lastname: O'Cearbhaill
authors.forename: Mads Emil
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Matthiesen
authors.forename: Luye
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Mu
authors.forename: Seung Yun
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Miranda-Nieves
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Irimia
authors.forename: Jeffrey M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Karp
mesh_terms: D054443:Cell Migration Assays; D002633:Chemotaxis; D006801:Humans; D059630:Mesenchymal Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology; D044085:Microfluidics / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods*; D009995:Osmosis; D013997:Time Factors