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Aqueous Droplets Used as Enzymatic Microreactors and Their Electromagnetic Actuation
Published on: August 28, 2017
Droplets as reaction compartments for protein nanotechnology
Sean R A Devenish1, Miriam Kaltenbach, Martin Fischlechner
1Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
Methods in Molecular Biology (Clifton, N.J.)
|March 19, 2013
Summary
Extreme miniaturization using microdroplets allows for high-throughput biological and chemical experiments with reduced sample needs. This review offers a practical framework for droplet formation, experimental setup, and analysis for protein scientists.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Chemical Biology
- Molecular Biology
Background:
- Miniaturization of reactions in pico- to nanoliter microdroplets is a rapidly developing field.
- This approach enables significantly more experiments with lower sample consumption.
- It holds great promise for advancing high-throughput experimental capabilities.
Purpose of the Study:
- To provide protein scientists with a comprehensive experimental framework for utilizing microdroplets.
- To detail methods for droplet formation, experimental setup, and analysis.
- To facilitate the adoption of microdroplet technology in protein science.
Main Methods:
- Formation of polydisperse droplets via emulsification.
- Generation of monodisperse droplets using microfluidic devices.
- Construction of experimental rigs and microfluidic chips.
- Techniques for droplet handling and data analysis.
Main Results:
- Established methods for creating both polydisperse and monodisperse microdroplets.
- Guidance on building necessary experimental apparatus and microfluidic chips.
- Strategies for effective manipulation and analysis of microdroplets in experiments.
Conclusions:
- Microdroplet technology offers a powerful platform for high-throughput experimentation in protein science.
- A structured experimental framework is crucial for successful implementation.
- This review equips researchers with the knowledge to leverage microdroplets for efficient discovery.
