Acoustic erythrocytometer for mechanically probing cell viscoelasticity

Link, A. and Franke, T. (2020) Acoustic erythrocytometer for mechanically probing cell viscoelasticity. Lab on a Chip, 20(11), pp. 1991-1998. (doi: 10.1039/C9LC00999J) (PMID:32367091)

Abstract

We demonstrate an acoustic device to mechanically probe a population of red blood cells at the single cell level. The device operates by exciting a surface acoustic wave in a microfluidic channel creating a stationary acoustic wave field of nodes and antinodes. Erythrocytes are attracted to the nodes and are deformed. Using a stepwise increasing and periodically oscillating acoustic field we study the static and dynamic deformation of individual red blood cells one by one. We quantify the deformation by the Taylor deformation index D and relaxation times τ1 and τ2 that reveal both the viscous and elastic properties of the cells. The precision of the measurement allows us to distinguish between individual cells in the suspension and provides a quantitative viscoelastic fingerprint of the blood sample at single cell resolution. The method overcomes limitations of other techniques that provide averaged values and has the potential for high-throughput.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Franke, Professor Thomas and Link, Mr Andreas
• Authors: Link, A., and Franke, T.
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Engineering > Biomedical Engineering
• Journal Name: Lab on a Chip
• Publisher: Royal Society of Chemistry
• ISSN: 1473-0197
• ISSN (Online): 1473-0189
• Published Online: 21 April 2020
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2020 The Royal Society of Chemistry
• First Published: First published in Lab on a Chip 20(11): 1991-1998
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License

Project Code	Award No	Project Name	Principal Investigator	Funder's Name	Funder Ref	Lead Dept
174078		Thin Film Platform Technologies for Conformable and Mechanically Flexible Biosensors	Thomas Franke	Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)	EP/P018882/1	ENG - Biomedical Engineering