Microfluidic Technologies for Single-Cell Analysis

Analysis of single cells allows a completeunderstanding of the heterogeneity that is present incell behavior and function. Current single-cellanalysis methods provide high-throughput informationabout labeled biomolecules within cells but oftencannot follow the dynamic processes occurring insignaling pathways. New microfluidic methods haveseparately allowed assays of fast timescale responsesor creation of uniform environments to study cellbehavior in a more quantitative manner. This bookfocuses on microfluidic hydrodynamic trappingtechniques that aid in both fast timescalemeasurements and uniform environmental control in asingle platform. Example applications for fasttimescale analysis of pore-forming toxin insertioninto membranes and assays of single-cell enzymecontent will be presented. The book would be ofinterest to analytical chemists engineers andbiologists developing platforms to study single-cellbehavior. Also biologists looking for tools tostudy cells of interest with statistical accuracywould find the book most helpful.