High-throughput mechanophenotyping of multicellular spheroids using a microfluidic micropipette aspiration chip
Ruben C. Boot, Alessio Roscani, Lennard van Buren, Samadarshi Maity, Gijsje H. Koenderink, Pouyan E. Boukany
Abstract
a gentle flow, after which spheroid tongues are aspirated into adjacent aspiration channels using hydrostatic pressure. After each experiment, the spheroids are easily removed from the chip by reversing the pressure and new spheroids can be injected. The presence of multiple pockets with a uniform aspiration pressure, combined with the ease to conduct successive experiments, allows for a high throughput of tens of spheroids per day. We demonstrate that the chip provides accurate deformation data when working at different aspiration pressures. Lastly, we measure the viscoelastic properties of spheroids made of different cell lines and show how these are consistent with previous studies using established experimental techniques. In summary, our chip provides a high-throughput way to measure the viscoelastic deformation behavior of cell spheroids, in order to mechanophenotype different tissue types and examine the link between cell-intrinsic properties and overall tissue behavior.