Automation and Microfluidic Assays: In Vitro Models of the Mammalian Microcirculation

Abstract

The red blood cells (RBCs) from patients with such diseases as pulmonary hypertension (PH) and diabetes (Type I and II) have a unique physical property, namely, the deformability of their RBCs are different from those of healthy patients. For example, patients with PH and diabetes have RBCs whose deformability is less than that of healthy patients. Unfortunately for these patients, there have been very few reports relating these somewhat abnormal RBC deformabilities to a cause/effect of the aforementioned diseases. Our group believes there is a link between the physical properties of these RBCs, the chemical properties they induce, and the resultant physiological consequences of the induced chemical properties. However, characterization or verification of the physical, chemical, and physiological processes is difficult because current analytical tools do not enable all three processes to be monitored simultaneously. Here, the ability of microchip technology to monitor physical, chemical, and physiological events that may occur in each of the diseases will be discussed. These events, which are physically stimulated on-chip, are monitored both optically (chemiluminescence) and electrochemically (amperometry), and when taken collectively, become excellent in vitro models of important in vivo processes.