Cell chemotaxis on paper for diagnostics

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Cell Biology
• Microfluidics

Background:

• Traditional microfluidic chemotaxis platforms require specialized equipment and long incubation times.
• Existing systems are not readily adaptable for rapid diagnostics or point-of-care applications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a low-cost, rapidly assembled paperfluidic device for generating stable chemokine gradients.
• To enable short-term cell migration studies and assess directed cell movement.
• To establish a foundational technology for future microfluidic diagnostic platforms.

Main Methods:

• A novel paperfluidic device was designed for rapid (<1 second) chemokine gradient generation.
• The device produces a quasi-stable gradient for at least 20 minutes.
• Human pan-T cells were utilized to demonstrate proof-of-concept cell migration in response to the gradient.

Main Results:

• The paperfluidic device successfully generated a sharp chemokine gradient.
• Human pan-T cells exhibited significant directed migration towards the chemokine gradient (p ≪ 0.01).
• Cell migration response was observed within a short 20-minute timeframe.

Conclusions:

• The developed paperfluidic device offers a low-cost, efficient alternative for creating chemokine gradients.
• This technology significantly reduces the time required for cell migration studies.
• The platform represents a foundational step towards developing microfluidic chemotaxis systems for point-of-care diagnostics.