Advances in virus-host interaction research based on microfluidic platforms

Viral epidemics pose a serious threat to global public health, making it essential to explore virus-host interactions for uncovering the pathogenesis of viral diseases and developing effective antiviral strategies. Traditional in vitro cell infection models struggle to replicate physiological microenvironment, while animal infection models may encounter obstacles such as species gap, high-cost, and ethical issues. Additionally, potential heterogeneous infection outcomes are usually inaccessible by population-based experiments. Microfluidics, as an emerging interdisciplinary platform, has proven to be a powerful tool for inquiring virus-host interactions. In this review, conventional virological methods were introduced first and remarkable advantages of microfluidics in viral cell biology were highlighted. Next, the in-depth applications of microfluidics in analyzing heterogeneity of virus-host interplays, dynamic monitoring of events related to viral life cycle, and modeling of viral infectious diseases were fully elaborated from the perspective of single-cell chip, multi-cell culture chip and organ-on-a-chip (organ chip). Finally, the opportunities and challenges in developing robust microfluidic methods for virology were discussed. Overall, this review aims to provide an overview of microfluidic-based research on virus-host interaction and promote multidisciplinary collaborations for better understanding and responding to viral threats.