Summary:
UCLA researchers in the Department of Bioengineering have developed a high throughput, single cell screening and sorting platform to facilitate single cell functional assays.
Background:
Biological assays are usually performed using microwell plates because of their ability to scale experiments and integrate with current lab automation infrastructure. Typically, colorimetric and fluorescent readouts can be obtained in cells that adhere to the bottom of these wells to study biological functions. However, to sort single cells and perform functional biological assays, microwell plates are not optimal as the signal from individual cells is diluted by the large volume of fluid in the well. Therefore, there is a need for a new platform to sort single cells and analyze their functions for high-throughput functional cell screening.
Innovation:
UCLA researchers in the Department of Bioengineering developed a platform that can perform functional assays on individual cells with high throughput. The platform uses structured microparticles, known as “nanovials”, that hold a single cell and require no specialized instrumentation. These nanovials enable fluid exchange around cells and can be sealed and unsealed on-demand. The platform is capable of high throughput and has demonstrated analysis of more than 1,000,000 events in less than an hour. The invention will allow access to high throughput functional cell screening thus speeding up the development of new biotechnology products. Moreover, this platform could lay the foundation for the next generation of single-cell and single molecule assays using existing accessible instrumentation.
Interview:
Nanovials: Technology created by UCLA Scientist Dino Di Carlo and colleagues aims to change research
Potential Applications:
- Single cell assays
- Molecule assays
- Point-of-care
- Diagnostics
- Biological assays
Advantages:
- Lower sample volume
- Rapid sorting
- Cost effective
- Versatile molecule analysis
- Easily adaptable with current instrumentation
Development to Date:
First successful demonstration by sorting of >1,000,000 events in less than hour
Related Papers:
de Rutte, J.; Dimatteo, R.; Archang, M. M.; van Zee, M.; Koo, D.; Lee, S.; Sharrow, A. C.; Krohl, P. J.; Mellody, M.; Zhu, S.; et al. Suspendable Hydrogel Nanovials for Massively Parallel Single-Cell Functional Analysis and Sorting. ACS Nano 2022.
Wu, C. Y.; Owsley, K.; Di Carlo, D. Rapid Software-Based Design and Optical Transient Liquid Molding of Microparticles. Adv. Mater. 2015, 27 (48), 7970–7978.