Microfluidic devices fitted with "flowver" paper pumps generate steady, tunable gradients for extended observation of chemotactic cell migration.

Microfluidics approaches have gained popularity in the field of directed cell migration, enabling control of the extracellular environment and integration with live-cell microscopy; however, technical hurdles remain. Among the challenges are the stability and predictability of the environment, which are especially critical for the observation of fibroblasts and other slow-moving cells. Such experiments require several hours and are typically plagued by the introduction of bubbles and other disturbances that naturally arise in standard microfluidics protocols. Here, we report on the development of a passive pumping strategy, driven by the high capillary pressure and evaporative capacity of paper, and its application to study fibroblast chemotaxis. The paper pumps-flowvers (flow + clover)-are inexpensive, compact, and scalable, and they allow nearly bubble-free operation, with a predictable volumetric flow rate on the order of μl/min, for several hours. To demonstrate the utility of this approach, we combined the flowver pumping strategy with a Y-junction microfluidic device to generate a chemoattractant gradient landscape that is both stable (6+ h) and predictable (by finite-element modeling calculations). Integrated with fluorescence microscopy, we were able to recapitulate previous, live-cell imaging studies of fibroblast chemotaxis to platelet derived growth factor (PDGF), with an order-of-magnitude gain in throughput. The increased throughput of single-cell analysis allowed us to more precisely define PDGF gradient conditions conducive for chemotaxis; we were also able to interpret how the orientation of signaling through the phosphoinositide 3-kinase pathway affects the cells' sensing of and response to conducive gradients.