Sequentially addressable dielectrophoretic array for high-throughput sorting of large-volume biological compartments.

Area of Science:

• Biotechnology
• Microfluidics
• Cell Biology

Background:

• Droplet microfluidics is crucial for single-cell analysis in precision medicine and biotechnology.
• A key limitation is the trade-off between droplet volume and sorting throughput, restricting applications to small droplets incompatible with long-term cell culture.

Purpose of the Study:

• To overcome the limitations of conventional droplet microfluidics by enabling high-throughput sorting of large droplets.
• To develop a novel microfluidic device for enhanced single-cell analysis and long-term cell maintenance.

Main Methods:

• Development of a sequentially addressable dielectrophoretic array (SADA) sorter.
• Utilizing an on-chip electrode array activated sequentially to apply dielectrophoretic forces on target droplets.
• Synchronizing electrode activation with droplet speed and position in a high-speed flow.

Main Results:

• Demonstration of large-droplet sorting with approximately 20-fold higher throughput compared to existing methods.
• Successful application of the SADA sorter for long-term single-cell analysis of *Saccharomyces cerevisiae* based on growth rate.

Conclusions:

• The SADA sorter effectively addresses the droplet volume-throughput trade-off in microfluidics.
• This technology enables advanced single-cell studies, including long-term cell maintenance and growth rate analysis, with significantly improved efficiency.