title: Digital Microfluidic Cell Culture.
abstract: Digital microfluidics (DMF) is a droplet-based liquid-handling technology that has recently become popular for cell culture and analysis. In DMF, picoliter- to microliter-sized droplets are manipulated on a planar surface using electric fields, thus enabling software-reconfigurable operations on individual droplets, such as move, merge, split, and dispense from reservoirs. Using this technique, multistep cell-based processes can be carried out using simple and compact instrumentation, making DMF an attractive platform for eventual integration into routine biology workflows. In this review, we summarize the state-of-the-art in DMF cell culture, and describe design considerations, types of DMF cell culture, and cell-based applications of DMF.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3G9, Canada; email: aaron.wheeler@utoronto.ca.|The Terrence Donnelly Center for Cellular and Biomolecular Research, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3E1, Canada.
authors.forename: Alphonsus H C
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Ng
authors.affiliation: Institute for Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3G9, Canada; email: aaron.wheeler@utoronto.ca.|The Terrence Donnelly Center for Cellular and Biomolecular Research, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3E1, Canada.
authors.forename: Bingyu Betty
authors.initials: BB
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Institute for Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3G9, Canada; email: aaron.wheeler@utoronto.ca.|The Terrence Donnelly Center for Cellular and Biomolecular Research, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3E1, Canada.
authors.forename: M Dean
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Chamberlain
authors.affiliation: Institute for Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3G9, Canada; email: aaron.wheeler@utoronto.ca.|The Terrence Donnelly Center for Cellular and Biomolecular Research, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3E1, Canada.|Department of Chemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3H6, Canada.
authors.forename: Aaron R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Wheeler
mesh_terms: D000327:Adsorption; D018929:Cell Culture Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D002469:Cell Separation; D004353:Drug Evaluation, Preclinical; D058874:Electrowetting; D006801:Humans; D056656:Lab-On-A-Chip Devices; D008422:Materials Testing; D046210:Microfluidic Analytical Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D020442:Poloxamer; D011506:Proteins / Q000737:chemistry; D013501:Surface-Active Agents
chemical_list: D011506:Proteins; D013501:Surface-Active Agents; D020442:Poloxamer
keywords: droplet; drug screening; electrowetting on dielectric; hydrogel; organ-on-a-chip; protein adsorption