IMAGING LIPID MICRODOMAINS IN A MICROFLUIDIC BILAYER LIPID MEMBRANE CHIP

摘要

A microfluidic bilayer lipid membrane (BLM) system supporting correlated opto-electrical membrane characterization has been developed and applied to the imaging of phase-separated lipid microdomains by confocal microscopy. The device consists of a microfluidic network supporting rapid perfusion fabricated in a thermoplastic substrate, bonded to a thin PVDC partition and supported by a thin cover glass suitable for optical detection. The device also supports a novel "kiss and retreat" method for the automated in situ formation of suspended BLMs. By enabling the simultaneous measurement of transmembrane current and optical observation of lipid microdomains in real-time, without the need for scanning confocal microscopy, the microfluidic platform opens the door to new multi-domain measurements of dynamic lipid-lipid and lipid-ligand interactions that are not feasible using established biophysical characterization tools.