Offer no. 30/14
Microfluidic system for automatic formation of lipid membranes and testing of membrane protein activity
- Summary:
The invention comprises the microfluidic system that enables the reconstitution of stable and reproducible synthetic lipid bilayers. The lipid bilayer is formed between the seqence of aqueous droplets submerged in oil, when the phospholipid molecules self-organize at their interface. One of the possible applications of this method is a high-throughput screening of putative agents interacting with membrane proteins. Droplet microfluidics is a technology that would exclude the manual handling of fluids and enable replicable, high-throughput measurements. Thanks to the microfluidic control over the droplets it was possible to exchange them in an automated way and perform a rapid screen of different concentrations of an membrane protein inhibitors.
- Inventors:
Tomasz Kamiński, Magdalena Czekalska, Piotr Garstecki
- Advantages / Innovative aspects:
- Innovation comprises the microfluidic system that combines the technologies of passive (use of hydrodynamic traps) and active (use of external valves) handling of droplets on a microfluidic chip. This technological synergy ensures that operation on droplets are conducted according to predefined protocol.
- The artificial lipid membrane has an exceptional stability that supports long-term measurements.
- The measurements of the activity of membrane proteins are highly reproducible and conducted with so far unattainable efficiency.
- There is no contact between analyzed sample and the electrodes that measure the ion current throug membrane proteins. Consequently the ris of cross-contamination is greatly reduced.
- Microfluidic system has an advantage of minute consumption of reagents.
- Keywords:
Droplet microfluidics, Droplet Interface Bilayers, membrane proteins, high-throughput screening
- Field:
- Usage:
Analytical chemistry, Antibiotics, Pharmacy and Medicines, Biochemistry and Biophysicist, Enzymology and Engineering of protein, Tests In vitro
- State of the progress:
stage of research
- Intellectual property rights:
Patent in Poland
