Fabrication and Applications of Microfluidic Devices: A Review

Abstract

Microfluidics is a relatively newly emerged field based on the combined principles of physics, chemistry, biology, fluid dynamics, microelectronics, and material science. Various materials can be processed into miniaturized chips containing channels and chambers in the microscale range. A diverse repertoire of methods can be chosen to manufacture such platforms of desired size, shape, and geometry. Whether they are used alone or in combination with other devices, microfluidic chips can be employed in nanoparticle preparation, drug encapsulation, delivery, and targeting, cell analysis, diagnosis, and cell culture. This paper presents microfluidic technology in terms of the available platform materials and fabrication techniques, also focusing on the biomedical applications of these remarkable devices.

Keywords: biomedical applications; chip materials; drug delivery; fabrication techniques; microfluidic devices; organ-on-a-chip.

Figure 1

Important benchmarks in the evolution of microfluidic device fabrication. Created based on information from the literature references [52,53,54,55,56,57].

Figure 2

Representation of the fundamental molding methods for microfluidics fabrication. Reprinted from an open-access source [54]. PDMS: polydimethylsiloxane.

Figure 3

Example of a microfluidic diagnosis device that can detect prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in less than 15 min. Reprinted from an open-access source [82].

Figure 4

Gut-on-a-chip microfluidic device. (a) Schematic top view of the system made of two polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) layers and one polycarbonate (PC) membrane; (b) current assembled device; (c) schematic drawing of the A-A’ cross-section; and (d) entire setup (including 4 devices, 9 colon explants, and 4 independent culture medium reservoirs and wastes) placed in an incubator. Reprinted from an open-access source [101].

Figure 5

Kidney-on-a-chip microfluidic device. (a) Schematic diagram of the chip containing renal proximal tubular epithelial cells (RPTECs) and peritubular capillary endothelial cells (PCECs), and its sectional view and (b) current assembled chip. Reprinted from an open-access source [103].

Figure 6

Microfluidic drug delivery systems classifications. Created based on information from a literature reference [105].