Abstract

Tunable Flow Confinements For Microscale Molecular Analysis on Tissues

Govind Kaigala, Research Staff Member, IBM Research Laboratory

Traditionally, compartments are formed with hydrogels, multi-phase systems (droplets), or inkjets. In contrast, we are developing ‘flow confinements’ which comprise compartments formed on a surface by the flow of a shaping liquid around a processing liquid. We termed these implementations collectively as tunable flow confinements (TFC). In contrast to standard microfluidics, which are typically closed, we are developing scanning, non-contact microfluidic technology that can shape liquids in the "open space" over surfaces. TFCs are implemented using a liquid scanning probe called the microfluidic probe and function on standard biological substrates such as Petri dishes, slides, and tissue sections when the substrate is kept wet. In this talk, I will show how this family of liquid scanning probe devices is evolving as a versatile bioanalytical tool to alter the physics and chemistry of biological interfaces at the micrometer to centimeter-length scales. I will also propose concepts pertaining to tissue microprocessing encompassing local phenotyping and molecular profiling, which may contribute to the multi-modal analysis of critical biopsy samples.