Development of Novel Microfluidics Device to Enable Live Cell Imaging
What
Collaborated with Geisinger Department of Cardiac Surgery to develop a compact microfluidic device to emulate arterial conditions and permit live cell imaging.
Designed, simulated, prototyped, and validated final design, enabling adjustable cell shear stress and imaging through both brightfield and confocal microscopy.
How
Designed CAD models in Onshape.
Validated shear stress values and laminar flow in COMSOL Multiphysics.
Used FDM Printing to print prototypes to test sizes, clearances, and microscope fit.
Developed Engineering Drawings to have parts manufactured in machine shop.
Implemented DFM Principles to reduce machining time and complexity.
Results
Final design achieved statistically significant endothelial cell alignment in 8 hours, indicating successful function.
Presented results in poster presentation at the 2023 Biomedical Engineering Society annual meeting in Seattle, WA.