USING A MICROFLUIDIC CHIP TO DISCOVER WHERE PIPERLONGUMINE LOCALIZES IN PANCREATIC CANCER CELLS

摘要

Piperlongumine (PL) is a bioactive agent which has been shown to kill numerous cancer cell types via elevating reactive oxygen species levels and enhancing DNA damage without effecting normal cells [1]. The mechanism of action for PL in pancreatic cancer cells is still unknown, and one of the first steps in identifying the underlying mechanism of PL is determining the organelle where PL localizes in pancreatic cancer cells. The proposed method, to determine localization, will use a microfluidic chip array and dielectrophoretic (DEP) forces to isolate and then hold individual pancreatic cancer cells in place, so that single cell qRT-PCR can be performed. The technique to attract and subsequently extract the mRNA from a single cell is based on the use of a modified atomic force microscope (AFM) probe called a dielectrophoretic nanotweezer (DENT), which allows the extraction of mRNA from within individual compartments of a single cell. As a first step towards developing this procedure simulations of the microfluidic chip's electrode geometries were designed to create a highly nonuniform electric field. Several iterations of the design were investigated to create an electric field gradient that according to the simulations should be able to successfully trap and hold pancreatic cancer cells. These successful simulations pave the way to fabricate a microfluidic chip to further localize PL inside the cell.