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Updated: Dec 3, 2025

Step-specific Sorting of Mouse Spermatids by Flow Cytometry

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Published on: December 31, 2015

Method for Passive Droplet Sorting after Photo-Tagging.

Chandler Dobson¹, Claudia Zielke¹, Ching W Pan¹

¹Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Santa Clara University, Santa Clara, CA 95053, USA.

|October 31, 2020

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

This study introduces photo-tagging for microfluidic droplet selection. Irradiated droplets are passively sorted based on pH-induced interfacial tension changes, enabling cell sorting and continuous-flow applications.

Keywords:

droplet array droplet microfluidics microfluidics passive sorting photo-tag sorting

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Area of Science:

Microfluidics and Droplet Technology
Biotechnology and Cell Sorting
Photochemistry and Surface Science

Background:

Microfluidic droplet manipulation is crucial for high-throughput screening and analysis.
Existing droplet selection methods often lack specificity or require complex instrumentation.
Controlling droplet interfacial tension is key to developing novel sorting mechanisms.

Purpose of the Study:

To develop a photo-tagging method for individual microfluidic droplet selection.
To enable passive sorting of droplets based on light-induced changes in interfacial tension.
To demonstrate the application of this technique for cell sorting, including cells at specific apoptosis stages.

Main Methods:

Utilized a specific surfactant to create pH-sensitive interfacial tension in microfluidic droplets.
Incorporated a photoacid (pyranine) into droplets, which decreases pH upon photoexcitation.
Implemented photoexcitation to selectively increase interfacial tension of target droplets for passive retention or redirection in flow.

Main Results:

Photo-tagged droplets were successfully retained in wells within a droplet array, while others were eluted.
Demonstrated selection of droplets containing cells at specific stages of apoptosis.
Adapted the technique for continuous-flow sorting, directing photo-tagged droplets to a different exit via a microfabricated trench.

Conclusions:

Photo-tagging offers a versatile, non-invasive method for microfluidic droplet selection.
The technique decouples observation from selection, allowing sorting based on diverse signals and user-defined features.
Applicable to both droplet arrays and continuous-flow systems using standard fluorescence microscopy.