Design, Fabrication, and Testing of a Microfluidic Device for Thermotaxis and Chemotaxis Assays of Sperm:

摘要

Infertile couples needing assisted reproduction are increasing, so a fundamental understanding of motile sperm migrationis required. This paper presents an advanced microfluidic device for sperm motion analysis utilizing chemotaxis andthermotaxis simultaneously for the first time. The proposed device is a transparent polydimethylsiloxane- and glassbased microfluidic chip system providing a low-cost, useful, and disposable platform for sperm analysis. The concentrationgradient of the chemoattractant (acetylcholine) and the temperature difference are formed along the microchannel. Thetemperature gradient is generated and controlled by a microheater and microsensor. Thermotactic and chemotacticresponses of mouse sperm were examined using the proposed device. Experimental results show that motile mouse spermare attracted more sensitively under integrated conditions of chemotaxis and thermotaxis rather than individual conditionsof chemotaxis and thermotaxis. This sperm analysis device is expected to be a useful tool for the study of mammaliansperm migration and the improvement of artificial insemination techniques.