Name: microfabrication of chip-sized scaffolds for three-dimensional cell cultivation
Uploaded: 2008-05-12T19:12:00
Description: Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Microfabrication of Chip-sized Scaffolds for Three-dimensional Cell cultivation at JoVE.com

The authors wish to thank Dirk Herrmann, Oliver Wendt, Siegfried Horn, Hartmut Gutzeit, and Joerg Bohn for their substantial help concerning the solvent vapour welding. 
Furthermore, we would like to acknowledge Michael Hartmann, Alex Gerwald, and Daniel Leisen for their technical assistance.

Process Sequence #1: Hot Embossing, Machining and Solvent Vapour Welding
The CellChip in its cubic design is replicated by hot embossing or micro injection moulding. For this, we use a micromachined brass mould with the inverse geometry of the chip. The containers - arranged in a regular array of up to 1156 containers - have a cubic design with an edge length of 300 &micro;m. For hot embossing, the replication process is performed on a conventional WUM02 (Jenoptik Mikrotechnik, Germany). The too...

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	<li>Knedlitschek, G., Schneider, F., Gottwald, E., Schaller, T., Eschbach, E., Weibezahn, K. F. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=A+tissue-like+culture+system+using+microstructures:+influence+of+extracellular+matrix+material+on+cell+adhesion+and+aggregation.">A tissue-like culture system using microstructures: influence of extracellular matrix material on cell adhesion and aggregation.</a> J Biomech Eng. 121, 35-39 (1999).</li><li>Gottwald, E., Giselbrecht, S., Augspurger, C., Lahni, B., Dambrowsky, N., Truckenm&#252;ller, R., Piotter, V., Gietzelt, T., Wendt, O., Pfleging, W., Welle, A., Rolletschek, A., Wobus, A. M., Weibezahn, K. F. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=A+chip-based+platform+for+the+in+vitro+generation+of+tissues+in+three-dimensional+organization.">A chip-based platform for the in vitro generation of tissues in three-dimensional organization.</a> Lab Chip. 7, 777-785 (2007).</li><li>Heckele, M., Schomburg, W. K. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Review+on+micro+molding+of+thermoplastic+polymers.">Review on micro molding of thermoplastic polymers.</a> Journal of Micromechanics And Microengineering. 14, (2004).</li><li>Giselbrecht, S., Gietzelt, T., Guber, A. E., Gottwald, E., Trautmann, C., Truckenm&#252;ller, R., Weibezahn, K. -. F. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Microthermoforming+as+a+novel+technique+for+manufacturing+scaffolds+in+tissue+engineering+(CellChips.">Microthermoforming as a novel technique for manufacturing scaffolds in tissue engineering (CellChips.</a> IEE Proc.-Nanobiotechnol. 151, 151-157 (2004).</li><li>Giselbrecht, S., Gietzelt, T., Gottwald, E., Trautmann, C., Truckenm&#252;ller, R., Weibezahn, K. -. F., Welle, A. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=3D+tissue+culture+substrates+produced+by+microthermoforming+of+pre-processed+polymer+films.">3D tissue culture substrates produced by microthermoforming of pre-processed polymer films.</a> Biomed Microdevices. 8, 191-199 .</li><li>Truckenm&#252;ller, R., Rummler, Z., Schaller, T., Schomburg, W. K. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Low-cost+thermoforming+of+micro+fluidic+analysis+chips.">Low-cost thermoforming of micro fluidic analysis chips.</a> Journal of Micromechanics and Microengineering. 12, 375-379 (2002).</li><li>Truckenm&#252;ller, R., Giselbrecht, S. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Microthermoforming+of+flexible,+not+buried+hollow+microstructures+for+chip-based+life+sciences+applications.">Microthermoforming of flexible, not buried hollow microstructures for chip-based life sciences applications.</a> IEE Proc.-Nanobiotechnol. 151, 163-166 (2004).</li><li>Fleischer, R. L., Price, P. B., Walker, R. M. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Nuclear+tracks+in+solids.">Nuclear tracks in solids.</a> , .</li></ol>

Although established methods of polymer microreplication, such as micro injection moulding or hot embossing, are suitable for producing microstructures, they are not really effective in producing microstructures with an integrated and highly controlled porosity, as is needed for the CellChip. Bulky structures e.g. require costly machining to reduce wall thickness for a subsequent laser perforation or walls have to be completely substituted by track-etched membranes. 
SMART is a new and promising technology that can over...

microfabrication of chip-sized scaffolds for three-dimensional cell cultivation

Using microfabrication technologies is a prerequisite to create scaffolds of reproducible geometry and constant quality for three-dimensional cell cultivation. These technologies offer a wide spectrum of advantages not only for manufacturing but also for different applications. The size and shape of formed cell clusters can be influenced by the exact and reproducible architecture of the microfabricated scaffold and, therefore, the diffusion path length of nutrients and gases can be controlled.1 This is unquestionably a useful tool to prevent apoptosis and necrosis of cells due to an insufficient nutrient and gas supply or removal of cellular metabolites.
Our polymer chip, called CellChip, has the outer dimensions of 2 x 2 cm with a central microstructured area. This area is subdivided into an array of up to 1156 microcontainers with a typical dimension of 300 m edge length for the cubic design (cp- or cf-chip) or of 300 m diameter and depth for the round design (r-chip).2
So far, hot embossing or micro injection moulding (in combination with subsequent laborious machining of the parts) was used for the fabrication of the microstructured chips. Basically, micro injection moulding is one of the only polymer based replication techniques that, up to now, is capable for mass production of polymer microstructures.3 However, both techniques have certain unwanted limitations due to the processing of a viscous polymer melt with the generation of very thin walls or integrated through holes. In case of the CellChip, thin bottom layers are necessary to perforate the polymer and provide small pores of defined size to supply cells with culture medium e.g. by microfluidic perfusion of the containers.
In order to overcome these limitations and to reduce the manufacturing costs we have developed a new microtechnical approach on the basis of a down-scaled thermoforming process. For the manufacturing of highly porous and thin walled polymer chips, we use a combination of heavy ion irradiation, microthermoforming and track etching. In this so called "SMART" process (Substrate Modification And Replication by Thermoforming) thin polymer films are irradiated with energetic heavy projectiles of several hundred MeV introducing so-called "latent tracks" Subsequently, the film in a rubber elastic state is formed into three dimensional parts without modifying or annealing the tracks. After the forming process, selective chemical etching finally converts the tracks into cylindrical pores of adjustable diameter.

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Microfabrication of Chip-sized Scaffolds for Three-dimensional Cell cultivation at JoVE.com

Microfabrication of Chip-sized Scaffolds for Three-dimensional Cell cultivation

We present two processes for the microfabrication of porous polymer chips for three-dimensional cell cultivation. The first one is hot embossing combined with a solvent vapour welding process. The second one uses a recently developed microthermoforming process combined with ion track technology leading to a significant simplification of manufacture.

Using microfabrication technologies is a prerequisite to create scaffolds of reproducible geometry and constant quality for three-dimensional cell ...

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