Device for the control of oxygen concentration in multiwell cell culture plates

Oxygen is a key modulator of many cellular pathways but current devices permitting in vitro oxygen modulation fail to meet the needs of many researchers. In this study, a microfabricated insert for multiwell formats has been developed to control the gas concentration of each well independent of the global incubator´s condition. The platform consists of a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) insert that nests into a standard multiwell plate and serves as a passive network with a gas permeable membrane aimed to deliver gas to adherent cell cultures. Preliminary data demonstrate that the insert is effective in controlling the oxygen concentration at the cell surface inside a well with equilibration times in minutes rather than hours for conventional technologies. A wide variety of oxygen profiles can be attained based on the device design, such as the cyclic profile achieved in this study, and even gradients in local oxygen concentration to mimic those found in vivo for more biomimetic cellular models.