An integrated gas removing system for microfluidic application. Design and evaluation

Microfluidic systems are used in a wide range of applications, including medical diagnostics, cell engineering and bioanalytics. In this work we focused on “Lab-on-a-chip” microsystems for cell cultivation. A troublesome problem of gas bubbles entering microdevices causing signal interferences and cells damage was emphasized. A novel, integrated debubbler in the form of cylindrical traps covered with thin PDMS membrane was designed and manufactured. Demonstrated debubbler was successfully applied in a long-lasting culture of HT-29 cell aggregates