Lab-On-A-Chip Devices for Cellular Arrays Based on Dielectrophoresis

Dielectrophoresis (DEP)-based lab-on-a-chip devices represent a very appealing approach for cell manipulation and will enable laboratory testing to move from laboratories into nonlaboratory settings. DEP-based lab-on-a-chip platforms involve the miniaturization of sev- eral complex chemical and physical procedures in a single microchip-based device, allowing the identification and isolation of cell populations or single cells, separation of cells exhibiting dif- ferent DEP properties, isolation of infected from uninfected cells, and viable from nonviable cells. In addition, DEP-arrays allow cellomics procedures based on the parallel manipulation of thousands of cells. Arrayed lab-on-a-chip platforms are also suitable to study cell–cell interac- tions and cell targeting with programmed numbers of microspheres.