Laboratory Methods in Microfluidics features a range of lab methods and techniques necessary to fully understand microfluidic technology applications. Microfluidics deals with the manipulation of small volumes of fluids at sub-millimeter scale domain channels. This exciting new field is becoming an increasingly popular subject both for research and education in various disciplines of science, including chemistry, chemical engineering and environmental science. The unique properties of microfluidic technologies, such as rapid sample processing and precise control of fluids in assay have made them attractive candidates to replace traditional experimental approaches. Practical for students, instructors, and researchers, this book provides a much-needed, comprehensive new laboratory reference in this rapidly growing and exciting new field of research. - Provides a number of detailed methods and instructions for experiments in microfluidics - Features an appendix that highlights several standard laboratory techniques, including reagent preparation plus a list of materials vendors for quick reference - Authored by a microfluidics expert with nearly a decade of research on the subject

Responding to the need for an affordable, easy-to-read textbook that introduces microfluidics to undergraduate and postgraduate students, this concise book will provide a broad overview of the important theoretical and practical aspects of microfluidics and lab-on-a-chip, as well as its applications.

Microfluidic biochips have gained prominence due to their versatile applications to biochemistry and health-care domains such as point-of-care clinical diagnosis of tropical and cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes, toxicity analysis, and for the mitigation of the global HIV crisis, among others. Microfluidic Lab-on-Chips (LoCs) offer a convenient platform for emulating various fluidic operations in an automated fashion. However, because of the inherent uncertainty of fluidic operations, the outcome of biochemical experiments performed on-chip can be erroneous even if the chip is tested a priori and deemed to be defect-free. This book focuses on the issues encountered in reliable sample preparation with digital microfluidic biochips (DMFBs), particularly in an error-prone environment. It presents state-of-the-art error management techniques and underlying algorithmic challenges along with their comparative discussions. Describes a comprehensive framework for designing a robust and error-tolerant biomedical system which will help in migrating from cumbersome medical laboratory tasks to small-sized LOC-based systems Presents a comparative study on current error-tolerant strategies for robust sample preparation using DMFBs and reports on efficient algorithms for error-tolerant sample dilution using these devices Illustrates how algorithmic engineering, cyber-physical tools, and software techniques are helpful in implementing fault tolerance Covers the challenges associated with design automation for biochemical sample preparation Teaches how to implement biochemical protocols using software-controlled microfluidic biochips Interdisciplinary in its coverage, this reference is written for practitioners and researchers in biochemical, biomedical, electrical, computer, and mechanical engineering, especially those involved in LOC or bio-MEMS design.

This book summarizes the various microfluidic-based approaches for single-cell capture, isolation, manipulation, culture and observation, lysis, and analysis. Single-cell analysis reveals the heterogeneities in morphology, functions, composition, and genetic performance of seemingly identical cells, and advances in single-cell analysis can overcome the difficulties arising due to cell heterogeneity in the diagnostics for a targeted model of disease. This book provides a detailed review of the state-of-the-art techniques presenting the pros and cons of each of these methods. It also offers lessons learned and tips from front-line investigators to help researchers overcome bottlenecks in their own studies. Highlighting a number of techniques, such as microfluidic droplet techniques, combined microfluidics-mass-spectrometry systems, and nanochannel sampling, it describes in detail a new microfluidic chip-based live single-cell extractor (LSCE) developed in the editor’s laboratory, which opens up new avenues to use open microfluidics in single-cell extraction, single-cell mass spectrometric analysis, single-cell adhesion analysis and subcellular operations. Serving as both an elementary introduction and advanced guidebook, this book interests and inspires scholars and students who are currently studying or wish to study microfluidics-based cell analysis methods.

Hands-on researchers review the principles behind successful miniaturization and describe the key techniques for miniaturizing large-scale biochemical and bioanalytical methods for microchip analysis. The authors cover not only the most popular methods for the fabrication of microchips (photolithography, laser ablation, and soft lithography), but also microfluidic techniques for such bioanalytical assays and bioprocesses as DNA analysis, PCR, immunoassays, and cell reactors. Highlights include PCR on a microchip, microscale cell culturing, and the study of cellular processes on a microchip. The protocols offer step-by-step laboratory instructions, an introduction outlining the principles behind the technique, lists of the necessary equipment and reagents, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls.

The concept of a miniaturised laboratory on a disposable chip is now a reality, and in everyday use in industry, medicine and defence. New devices are launched all the time, prompting the need for a straightforward guide to the design and manufacture of lab-on-a-chip (LOC) devices. This book presents a modular approach to the construction and integration of LOC components in detection science. The editors have brought together some of the leading experts from academia and industry to present an accessible guide to the technology available and its potential. Several chapters are devoted to applications, presenting both the sampling regime and detection methods needed. Further chapters describe the integration of LOC devices, not only with each other but also into existing technologies. With insights into LOC applications, from biosensing to molecular and chemical analysis, and presenting scaled-down versions of existing technology alongside unique approaches that exploit the physics of the micro and nano-scale, this book will appeal to newcomers to the field and practitioners requiring a convenient reference.

A lab-on-a-chip device is a microscale laboratory on a credit-card sized glass or plastic chip with a network of microchannels, electrodes, sensors and electronic circuits. These labs on a chip can duplicate the specialized functions as performed by their room-sized counterparts, such as clinical diagnoses, PCR and electrophoretic separation. The advantages of these labs on a chip include significant reduction in the amounts of samples and reagents, very short reaction and analysis time, high throughput and portability. Generally, a lab-on-a-chip device must perform a number of microfluidic functions: pumping, mixing, thermal cycling/incubating, dispensing, and separating. Precise manipulation of these microfluidic processes is key to the operation and performance of labs on a chip. The objective of this book is to provide a fundamental understanding of the interfacial electrokinetic phenomena in several key microfluidic processes, and to show how these phenomena can be utilised to control the microfluidic processes. For this purpose, this book emphasises the theoretical modelling and the numerical simulation of these electrokinetic phenomena in microfluidics. However, experimental studies of the electrokinetic microfluidic processes are also highlighted in sufficient detail. - The first book which systematically reviews electrokinetic microfluidics processes for lab-on-a chip applications - Covers modelling and numerical simulation of the electrokinetic microfluidics processes - Providing information on experimental studies and details of experimental techniques, which are essential for those who are new to this field