Microfluidic Formation of Honeycomb-Patterned Droplets Bounded by Interface Bilayers via Bimodal Molecular Adsorption
1
Komaba Institute for Science, The University of Tokyo, Komaba 3-8-1, Meguro, Tokyo 153-8902, Japan
2
Department of Applied Physics, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Naka-cho 2-24-16, Koganei, Tokyo 184-8588, Japan
3
Department of Biotechnology and Life Science., Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Naka-cho 2-24-16, Koganei, Tokyo 184-8588, Japan
4
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Nagaoka University of Technology, Kamitomioka 1603-1, Nagaoka, Niigata 940-2188, Japan
5
Department of Basic Science, The University of Tokyo, Komaba 3-8-1, Meguro, Tokyo 153-8902, Japan
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
Present address: Graduate School of Integrated Sciences for Life, School of Integrated Arts and Sciences, Hiroshima University, Kagamiyama 1-7-1, Higashi-Hiroshima, Hiroshima 739-8521, Japan.
Micromachines 2020, 11(7), 701; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi11070701
Received: 22 June 2020
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Revised: 14 July 2020
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Accepted: 16 July 2020
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Published: 20 July 2020
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances of Molecular Machines and Molecular Robots)
Assembled water-in-oil droplets bounded by lipid bilayers are used in synthetic biology as minimal models of cell tissue. Microfluidic devices successfully generate monodispersed droplets and assemble them via droplet interface bilayesr (DIB) formation. However, a honeycomb pattern of DIB-bounded droplets, similar to epithelial tissues, remains unrealized because the rapid DIB formation between the droplets hinders their ability to form the honeycomb pattern. In this paper, we demonstrate the microfluidic formation of a honeycomb pattern of DIB-bounded droplets using two surfactants with different adsorption rates on the droplet surface. A non-DIB forming surfactant (sorbitan monooleate, Span 80) was mixed with a lipid (1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine, PC), whose adsorption rate on the droplet surface and saturated interfacial tension were lower than those of Span 80. By changing the surfactant composition, we established the conditions under which the droplets initially form a honeycomb pattern and subsequently adhere to each other via DIB formation to minimize the interfacial energy. In addition, the reconstituted membrane protein nanopores at the DIBs were able to transport molecules. This new method, using the difference in the adsorption rates of two surfactants, allows the formation of a honeycomb pattern of DIB-bounded droplets in a single step, and thus facilitates research using DIB-bounded droplet assemblies.
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Keywords:
self-assembly; microfluidic device; lipid bilayers; droplet adhesion; close packed pattern
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MDPI and ACS Style
Fujiwara, S.; Shoji, K.; Watanabe, C.; Kawano, R.; Yanagisawa, M. Microfluidic Formation of Honeycomb-Patterned Droplets Bounded by Interface Bilayers via Bimodal Molecular Adsorption. Micromachines 2020, 11, 701. https://doi.org/10.3390/mi11070701
AMA Style
Fujiwara S, Shoji K, Watanabe C, Kawano R, Yanagisawa M. Microfluidic Formation of Honeycomb-Patterned Droplets Bounded by Interface Bilayers via Bimodal Molecular Adsorption. Micromachines. 2020; 11(7):701. https://doi.org/10.3390/mi11070701
Chicago/Turabian StyleFujiwara, Shougo, Kan Shoji, Chiho Watanabe, Ryuji Kawano, and Miho Yanagisawa. 2020. "Microfluidic Formation of Honeycomb-Patterned Droplets Bounded by Interface Bilayers via Bimodal Molecular Adsorption" Micromachines 11, no. 7: 701. https://doi.org/10.3390/mi11070701
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