Research
Microfluidics for Biomedicine
Our main objective is to advance the understanding of microscale fluid flow, specifically to facilitate the development of integrated micro/nanosystems for applications in biology and medicine.
Our research encompasses a broad range of disciplines, attracting students and researchers from diverse backgrounds. For further information, please reach out to Professor Chung, who can provide more details about our work.
Main research Topics
1. Gene Editing and Cancer Immunotherapy via Intracellular Delivery: |
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The successful introduction of biomolecules and nanomaterials into cells plays a crucial role in various fields, spanning from fundamental biology to clinical applications. At our lab, our primary goal is to pioneer innovative microfluidics-based intracellular delivery platforms. These platforms are designed to effectively deliver a wide range of nanomaterials into primary cells that are typically challenging to transfect, all without the need for carriers or external apparatus.
Moreover, we are capitalizing on these platforms to advance cancer immunotherapy, regenerative medicine, and genome editing. For example, we are actively working on the development of non-viral transfection technologies to enhance cell-based immunotherapies. Additionally, we are dedicated to establishing cutting-edge microfluidic strategies for next-generation genome editing techniques like prime editing. |
2. Single-cell Mechanotyping: |
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The mechanical properties related to cytoskeletal structures, such as cell deformability, have emerged as valuable label-free biomarkers for characterizing cell states and properties. Our primary focus is on the development of advanced platforms for real-time, multiplexed, high-throughput (>1K cells/sec), and label-free measurement of cell deformability. These platforms are designed to serve as screening and sorting tools, enabling quantitative assessment of cell deformability for cancer diagnosis. |
3. Fundamentals of Inertial Microfluidics: |
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Inertial microfluidics is a rapidly evolving field that explores the behaviors and properties of fluid-particle interactions and fluid-structure interactions, where both inertia and viscosity play significant roles, bridging the gap between Stokes and inviscid flow regimes. In traditional microfluidics, the influence of inertia has often been neglected due to the low flow velocities and small channel scales, resulting in a negligible Reynolds number (Re = ρULc/µ), where ρ represents fluid density, U is the flow velocity, Lc is the characteristic length of the channel, and µ denotes fluid viscosity.
However, in various microfluidic systems, the Reynolds number can reach non-zero values, highlighting the presence of fluid inertia. In microchannels, two prominent inertial effects emerge: (1) inertial particle migration and (2) geometry-induced secondary flows. Our research focuses on investigating the fundamental aspects of these inertial effects, shedding light on their underlying principles. By delving into these inertial phenomena, we aim to advance our understanding of inertial microfluidics. |