APPLICATIONS – MICROFLUIDIC CHIP-BASED CELL SORTER
EXTENDING YOUR RESEARCH WITH ON-CHIP SORT
This microfluidic chip cell sorter has allowed users to do what they could not do before. Now you have a tool to make your brilliant ideas come to life!
Here are some of the examples of research fields and samples that On-chip Sort is actively used.
STEM CELL RESEARCH
iPSCs, iPSC-derived cells and stem cells can be sorted without damaging the cells. Sorting in aseptic condition while preventing cross-contamination will greatly benefit research in cell transplantation.
CELL CLUSTERS & ORGANOIDS
Cell clusters, such as spheroids and organoids of diameter up to 150μm can be sorted while keeping the shape intact. Primary cell clumps and small organisms are also be sorted.
RARE CELL SORTING(CTC)
Rare cells (<0.01%) can be collected efficiently using our multi-step sorting technique. For example, Circulating Tumor Cells (CTCs) can be collected efficiently in an hour after sample pre-treatment.
EMULSION DROPLETS
Water-in-oil emulsion droplets can be sorted using oil as sheath fluid. Those droplets are used as a way to compartmentalize a sample, and reactions and cultivation of microbes ca be carried out in each individual droplet.
CELL CULTURING
Fragile cells sorted using conventional method show slow or no growth due to sorting damage. Improved cell viability and growth rate are observed for cells collected using our gentle sorting techniques.
ENVIRONMENTAL MICROORGANISMS
Microorganisms, such as soil microbes and marine organisms, are often susceptible to the sorting conditions. On-chip Sort allows for the use of any liquid as sheath fluid.
| Neurons | Sperm cells | Cardiomyocytes |
| Phytoplankton | Plant cells | Hepatocytes |
| Yeast | Gel balls | Pollen grains |
Applications
We promote new approaches and applications in various research fields with remarkable features of our microfluidic chip cell sorter, On-chip Sort.
Damage-free
On-chip’s sorting technology allows for damage-free cell sorting.
By adopting the Flow-shift method to control the flow within the microfluidic channel, On-chip Sort realized soring in an overwhelmingly small pressure of 0.3 psi. This method also eliminated the damaging steps involved in conventional sorting, even the most fragile cells can easily be sorted.
Spheroid/Organoid
Our cell sorter allows users to sort cells and particles much larger than standard cells.
In the conventional method, the size of cells that can be handled was limited by the nozzle size. On-chip Sort allows for sorting of large cells and cell clusters, such as spheroids and organoids, which is not attainable with a standard cell sorter.
Rare Cells
We are striving to develop our cell sorter for the use in medical and diagnostic applications.
The small footprint of On-chip Sort allows to operate the sorter inside standard biosafety cabinet, which is crucial for handling samples contamination-free. Furthermore, the lack of aerosol formation prevents potential exposure of hazardous sample to the operator. By utilizing these features, we conduct research to contribute to the fields of medial treatment, diagnostics and regenerative medicine. One of many examples is the detection and isolation of rare circulating tumor cells (CTCs) that are present in the blood of cancer patients. This enables monitoring the therapeutic effect by analyzing the number of CTCs and their mutations, which will then be used for the selection of the most appropriate suitable molecular target anticancer drug.
Emulsion Droplets
Emulsion droplets suspended in oil can easily be sorted.
In recent years, water-in-oil (W/O) droplets have attracted attention as practical and miniaturized bioreactors. Aqueous solutions are compartmentalized into nano- to picolitre segments using oil and surfactants. W/O droplets have already been put to use in gene analysis fields such as digital PCR (ddPCR) and next-generation sequencing (NGS). Furthermore, cells and microbes are being cultured inside for cloning and screening purposes.
Selection of Sheath Fluid
Any media can be used as sheath fluid on On-chip Sort.
Unlike conventional cell sorters, it employs an exchangeable microfluidic chip in which all the fluidic system is located. For this reason, analysis and sorting using cell culture media, seawater, and even oil as sheath fluid has become possible, delivering a new research tool to areas where cell sorters could not be used due to sheath fluid limitations. As a representative example, there is a high demand for sorting of marine microorganisms in seawater and plant protoplast in a mannitol solution. Because the media most appropriate for samples can be used for On-chip Sort, cells experience significantly less stress than when going through other cell sorters with specified media.
Basic Features
On-chip Sort has usual functions, such as multicolor correspondence and a compensation function, etc. and the same analysis and sorting as the existing flow cytometry system are possible.
The feature of equipment
– You can use software freely for a user-friendly interface.
– The check of optic adjustments, droplet generation, etc. is unnecessary.
- Just after a power supply is switched ON, you can use system immediately, and it is only throwing away a used-chip and turning OFF a power switch after the end of an experiment.
You do not have to maintenance before or after instrumentation.
You are able to freely use it in a short-lecture 、etc.
