Design and Fabrication of a Microfluidic Device for the Live Imaging of Cells Encapsulated in Biomimetic Hydrogel Scaffolds
Project Title: Design and Fabrication of a Microfluidic Device for the Live Imaging of Cells Encapsulated in Biomimetic Hydrogel Scaffolds
Project Duration: May 25 – August 1, 2015 (10 weeks), 40 hours per week.
Project Mentors –
- Primary Faculty Mentor (Name, Affiliation, website and Email/Phone):
Lohitash Karumbaiah, Ph.D
Assistant Professor of Regenerative Medicine
Regenerative Bioscience Center
The University of Georgia
ADS Complex | 425, River Road, Rm 310 | Athens, GA 30602-2771
Ph: 706-542-2017| Fax: 706-583-0274 | Email: lohitash at uga dot edu
http://www.karumbaiahlab.org |http://www.rbc.uga.edu
- Secondary Faculty Mentor (Name, Affiliation, website and Email/Phone):
Professor Leidong Mao
College of Engineering
The University of Georgia, Athens
Riverbend Research Laboratory South
220 Riverbend Road Room 166
Athens, GA 30602
706.542.1871 — Tel (office)
mao@uga.edu
http://micronano.engr.uga.edu
- Graduate Student/PostDoc mentors (Name, Affiliation and Email/Phone):
Meghan Logun
Graduate Student
Regenerative Bioscience Center
The University of Georgia
ADS Complex, 425, River Road, Athens, GA 30602-2771
meglog@uga.edu
Martha Betancur
Graduate Student
Regenerative Bioscience Center
The University of Georgia
ADS Complex, 425, River Road, Athens, GA 30602-2771
marthbet@uga.edu
Project Description:
While several studies have investigated tumor cell proliferation, and migration. Little is known about the tumor microenvironment and the influence, if any, of the biophysical interactions taking place in this milieu on cellular behavior. Hydrogels fabricated from natural or synthetic polymers can be used effectively to mimic the mechanical properties of tissue and the tumor microenvironment, and can potentially serve as ideal substrates to study tumor cell behavior in vitro. In this study, we hypothesize that glycosaminoglycan hydrogels can be modified to elicit a range of behaviors from encapsulated tumor cells, and that these outcomes can be visualized in real-time using a novel microfluidic device. This project is highly interdisciplinary in nature, involving microfluidics, biomaterials, Imaging, and cell and molecular biology. If successful, this platform technology can potentially be used to study stem cell behavior and can inform a host of other cell-transplantation therapies.
REU Student Role and Responsibility:
In this study, we hypothesize that glycosaminoglycan hydrogels can be modified to elicit a range of behaviors from encapsulated tumor cells, and that these outcomes can be visualized in real-time using a novel microfluidic device.
The REU student will be responsible for:
- Working with a graduate student mentor in the Karumbaiah Lab, and personnel in Prof. Leidong Mao’s lab to design the microfluidic imaging device.
- Cell culture of tumor cells and stem cells
- Hydrogel encapsulation of tumor cells and stem cells
- Labeling and live-cell imaging of encapsulated cells
Expected Outcome for REU student:
If successful in our approach, the student’s contribution on this project is expected to result in journal publications, conference presentations, and grant and patent applications in the near future.