pp. 375-386
S&M892 Research Paper https://doi.org/10.18494/SAM.2012.776 Published: October 16, 2012 Enhanced Microsphere Transport in Capillary by Conditioned Cells of Green Paramecia Used as Living Micromachines Controlled by Electric Stimuli [PDF] Shunsuke Furukawa and Tomonori Kawano (Received June 10, 2011; Accepted October 21, 2011) Keywords: BioMEMS, green paramecia, micro-biorobotics, particle transport
Some researchers have described the cells of Paramecium species as “swimming sensory cells” or “swimming neurons” applicable to micro-biorobotics and biological micro-electromechanical systems (BioMEMS). Paramecium species including green paramecia (Paramecium bursaria) migrate towards the anodic electrode when exposed to an electric field. This type of cellular movement is known as galvanotaxis. Because the ideal micromachines designed for microparticle transport must have a capacity for loading certain numbers of particles, P. bursaria was chosen as a model organism. In this study, we show enhanced microparticle transport by overcoming (i) the particle size limitation for the cell-mediated transport of microspheres of up to ca. 10 µm size (doubling the size of particles ever reported) and (ii) the limit of cellular migration distance manifested by galvanotactically stimulated cells.
Corresponding author: Tomonori KawanoCite this article Shunsuke Furukawa and Tomonori Kawano, Enhanced Microsphere Transport in Capillary by Conditioned Cells of Green Paramecia Used as Living Micromachines Controlled by Electric Stimuli, Sens. Mater., Vol. 24, No. 7, 2012, p. 375-386. |