Microsystems and functional assays for mechanobiology

Abstract

Microsystems and cantilever-based assays enable a wealth of custom measurements and analysis systems matched to the scale of cell biomechanics and mechanotransduction assays. Novel force and displacement sensors and actuators have been applied to study mechanisms of cell adhesion and the development and response of pluripotent cells in varied mechanical environments, to assay the function of hear cells, and to probe the mechanics and biology of the sense of touch in C. elegans or the mechanosensation of hair cells. In the Stanford Microsystems Lab, we design and fabricate many custom tools and sensors to probe cellular dynamics. We are interested in the reliable manufacture and operation of these micromachined devices in harsh biological environments as well as calibration approaches for precise measurements of nanoscale mechanical behaviors. We use these tools to address questions in the areas of physiology, biology, stem cells, neuroscience and cardiology with an eye toward quantitative and fundamental biophysics. In particular, microcantilevers have enabled measurements in a variety of applications over the past decades, ranging from scanning probe microscopy to visualize topography or characterize materials properties, to chemical sensing. Piezoresistive cantilever sensing offers particular advantages for system integration, scaling, and simplicity of transduction.