Individually addressable multi-chamber electroporation platform with dielectrophoresis-assisted cell positioning

We developed a multifunctional microfluidic platform which integrates electroporation and dielectrophoretic (DEP) trapping/positioning mechanisms. Its feasibility was demonstrated by characterizing and optimizing electroporation efficiency using on-chip spatial gradient of electroporation parameters. For simplicity, human dermal fibroblasts cells with a membrane impermeable fluorescent dye, PI, were used as to indicate electroporation. The results clearly show that the developed microfluidic platform has the potential to achieve high-throughput screening for electroporation with spatial control and uniformity.