title: Microfluidic devices for X-ray studies on hydrated cells.
abstract: X-ray studies of biological cells in microfluidic devices provide a method to probe cellular structures or structural changes at the molecular level in a precisely controlled environment. However, the device design and the used materials must be compatible with X-ray scattering techniques as well as the cell culture in the devices. For this purpose, we develop new types of X-ray compatible microfluidic devices, which are based on a UV-curable adhesive as a moldable material, and thin Kapton films and silicon nitride membrane windows as a growth substrate for cells and as a window material for X-rays. Using these devices, we perform scanning X-ray diffraction experiments with a nano-focused beam on fixed cells in buffer solution. In principle, these microfluidic devices also allow for X-ray studies on living cells.
authors.affiliation: Institute for X-Ray Physics & Courant Research Centre Nano-Spectroscopy and X-Ray Imaging, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, Friedrich-Hund-Platz 1, 37077 Göttingen, Germany.
authors.forename: Britta
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Weinhausen
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Köster
mesh_terms: D002460:Cell Line; D006801:Humans; D046210:Microfluidic Analytical Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D008856:Microscopy, Fluorescence; D017655:Silicon Compounds / Q000737:chemistry; D014965:X-Rays
chemical_list: D017655:Silicon Compounds; C032734:silicon nitride