A Rapidly Fabricated Microfluidic Chip for Cell Culture

Microfluidic chips (μFC) are emerging as powerful tools in chemistry, biochemistry, nanotechnology and biotechnology. The microscale size, possibility of integration and high-throughput present huge technical potential to facilitate the research of cell behavior by creating in vivo-like microenvironments. Here, we have developed a new method for rapid fabrication of μFC with Norland Optical Adhesive 81 (NOA81) for multiple cell culture with high efficiency. The proposed method is more suitable for the early structure exploration stage of μFC than existing procedures since no templates are needed and fast fabrication methods are presented. Simple PDMS-NOA81-linked microvalves were embedded in the μFC to control or block the fluid flow effectively, which significantly broadened the applications of μFC. Various types of cells were integrated into the chip and normal viabilities were maintained up to 1 week. Besides, concentration gradient was generated to investigate the cells in the μFC responded to drug stimulation. The cells appeared different in terms of shape and proliferation that strongly demonstrated the potential application of our μFC in online drug delivery. The high biocompatibility of NOA81 and its facile fabrication (μFC) promise its use in various cell analyses, such as cell-cell interactions or tissue engineering.