Multifunctional picoliter droplet manipulation platform and its application in single cell analysis.

We developed an automated and multifunctional microfluidic platform based on DropLab to perform flexible generation and complex manipulations of picoliter-scale droplets. Multiple manipulations including precise droplet generation, sequential reagent merging, and multistep solid-phase extraction for picoliter-scale droplets could be achieved in the present platform. The system precision in generating picoliter-scale droplets was significantly improved by minimizing the thermo-induced fluctuation of flow rate. A novel droplet fusion technique based on the difference of droplet interfacial tensions was developed without the need of special microchannel networks or external devices. It enabled sequential addition of reagents to droplets on demand for multistep reactions. We also developed an effective picoliter-scale droplet splitting technique with magnetic actuation. The difficulty in phase separation of magnetic beads from picoliter-scale droplets due to the high interfacial tension was overcome using ferromagnetic particles to carry the magnetic beads to pass through the phase interface. With this technique, multistep solid-phase extraction was achieved among picoliter-scale droplets. The present platform had the ability to perform complex multistep manipulations to picoliter-scale droplets, which is particularly required for single cell analysis. Its utility and potentials in single cell analysis were preliminarily demonstrated in achieving high-efficiency single-cell encapsulation, enzyme activity assay at the single cell level, and especially, single cell DNA purification based on solid-phase extraction.

Automated microfluidic screening assay platform based on DropLab.

This paper describes DropLab, an automated microfluidic platform for programming droplet-based reactions and screening in the nanoliter range. DropLab can meter liquids with picoliter-scale precision, mix multiple components sequentially to assemble composite droplets, and perform screening reactions and assays in linear or two-dimensional droplet array with extremely low sample and reagent consumptions. A novel droplet generation approach based on the droplet assembling strategy was developed to produce multicomponent droplets in the nanoliter to picoliter range with high controllability on the size and composition of each droplet. The DropLab system was built using a short capillary with a tapered tip, a syringe pump with picoliter precision, and an automated liquid presenting system. The tapered capillary was used for precise liquid metering and mixing, droplet assembling, and droplet array storage. Two different liquid presenting systems were developed based on the slotted-vial array design and multiwell plate design to automatically present various samples, reagents, and oil to the capillary. Using the tapered-tip capillary and the picoliter-scale precision syringe pump, the minimum unit of the droplet volume in the present system reached ~20 pL. Without the need of complex microchannel networks, various droplets with different size (20 pL-25 nL), composition, and sequence were automatically assembled, aiming to multiple screening targets by simply adjusting the types, volumes, and mixing ratios of aspirated liquids on demand. The utility of DropLab was demonstrated in enzyme inhibition assays, protein crystallization screening, and identification of trace reducible carbohydrates.