A Versatile Droplet Microfluidic Platform Capable of Confining Preformed Spheroids in Hydrogel Microenvironments for Downstream Growth and Analysis
Patient-derived tumor organoids are useful for personalized cancer research, but current methods and droplet microfluidics approaches often require large initial cell counts, difficult to acquire with biopsy samples. Our solution was to encapsulate preformed spheroids into hydrogel microparticles using droplet microfluidics, providing a controlled environment for their growth into organoids. Using a double-cross geometry chip, we successfully encapsulated spheroids 100–200 μm in size from a low initial cell count (~10⁴), achieving up to 75% total and 54% single-spheroid encapsulation efficiency. The spheroids maintained over 80% viable and retained uniform size over 5 days, demonstrating a robust way to encapsulate a low sample size without compromising consistency.
