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Updated: Jan 20, 2026

High Throughput MicroRNA Profiling: Optimized Multiplex qRT-PCR at Nanoliter Scale on the Fluidigm Dynamic ArrayTM IFCs
Published on: August 3, 2011
Microfluidic SlipChip device for multistep multiplexed biochemistry on a nanoliter scale
Dmitriy V Zhukov1, Eugenia M Khorosheva1, Tahmineh Khazaei2
1Division of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, California Institute of Technology, 1200 E. California Blvd, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA. rustem.admin@caltech.edu.
Abstract:
We have developed a multistep microfluidic device that expands the current SlipChip capabilities by enabling multiple steps of droplet merging and multiplexing. Harnessing the interfacial energy between carrier and sample phases, this manually operated device accurately meters nanoliter volumes of reagents and transfers them into on-device reaction wells. Judiciously shaped microfeatures and surface-energy traps merge droplets in a parallel fashion. Wells can be tuned for different volumetric capacities and reagent types, including for pre-spotted reagents that allow for unique identification of original well contents even after their contents are pooled. We demonstrate the functionality of the multistep SlipChip by performing RNA transcript barcoding on-device for synthetic spiked-in standards and for biologically derived samples. This technology is a good candidate for a wide range of biological applications that require multiplexing of multistep reactions in nanoliter volumes, including single-cell analyses.
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