Fluorinated
Pickering Emulsions Impede Interfacial Transport and Form Rigid Interface
for the Growth of Anchorage-Dependent Cells
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Abstract
This study describes the design and
synthesis of amphiphilic silica nanoparticles for the stabilization
of aqueous drops in fluorinated oils for applications in droplet microfluidics.
The success of droplet microfluidics has thus far relied on one type
of surfactant for the stabilization of drops. However, surfactants
are known to have two key limitations: (1) interdrop molecular transport
leads to cross-contamination of droplet contents, and (2) the incompatibility
with the growth of adherent mammalian cells as the liquid–liquid
interface is too soft for cell adhesion. The use of nanoparticles
as emulsifiers overcomes these two limitations. Particles are effective
in mitigating undesirable interdrop molecular transport as they are
irreversibly adsorbed to the liquid–liquid interface. They
do not form micelles as surfactants do, and thus, a major pathway
for interdrop transport is eliminated. In addition, particles
at the droplet interface provide a rigid solid-like interface to which
cells could adhere and spread, and are thus compatible with the proliferation
of adherent mammalian cells such as fibroblasts and breast cancer
cells. The particles described in this work can enable new applications
for high-fidelity assays and for the culture of anchorage-dependent
cells in droplet microfluidics, and they have the potential to become
a competitive alternative to current surfactant systems for the stabilization
of drops critical for the success of the technology