Scaling down single-cell reactions to the nanoliter level is critical to minimize the risk of contamination, increase reaction efficiency, and reduce costs. Researchers from the Single-cell Center of the Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have developed a centrifugally driven system for precise manipulation of nanoliter liquids in single-cell analysis, suitable for conventional biological laboratories.
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Simplified nanoliter liquid manipulation for high-throughput single-cell whole-genome amplification. Credit: Liu Yang This system, known as the centrifugally-driven nano-liquid pipetting system (CNPS), provides a low-cost and easy-to-use alternative to microfluidic technology and significantly improves the coverage and uniformity of single-cell genome sequencing. The results were published in Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical. "It plays a crucial role in applications such as cell phenotype evaluation, proteomics, genome amplification, and sequencing library construction," said Prof. Li Chunyu, first author of this study from Single-cell Center, highlighting the importance of scaling down reactions to the nanoliter level. Current methods for constructing a nanoliter reactor for whole-genome multiple displacement amplification from single cells primarily rely on microvalve-based microfluidic devices, microwells, and droplet-based microfluidics. "These approaches face…