NemaLife chip: a micropillar-based microfluidic culture device optimized for aging studies in crawling C. elegans
Year: 2020
Type: article
Abstract: In this study, we report a microfluidic device for the whole-life culture of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans that allows the scoring of animal survival and health measures. This device referred to as the NemaLife chip features: (1) an optimized micropillar arena in which animals can crawl, (2) sieve channels that separate progeny and prevent the loss of adults from the arena during culture maintenance, and (3) ports that allow rapid accessibility for feeding the adult-only population and introducing reagents as needed. The pillar arena geometry was optimized to accommodate the growing body size during culture and emulate the body gait and locomotion of animals reared on agar. Likewise, feeding protocols were optimized to recapitulate longevity outcomes typical of standard plate growth. Key benefits of the NemaLife Chip include eliminating the need to perform repeated manual transfers of adults during survival assays, negating the need for progeny-blocking chemical interventions, and avoiding the swim-induced stress across lifespan in animals reared in liquid. We also show that the culture of animals in pillar-less microfluidic chambers reduces lifespan and introduces physiological stress by increasing the occurrence of age-related vulval integrity disorder. We validated our pillar-based device with longevity analyses of classical aging mutants (daf-2, age-1, eat-2, and daf-16) and animals subjected to RNAi knockdown of age-related genes (age-1 and daf-16). We also showed that healthspan measures such as pharyngeal pumping and tap-induced stimulated reversals can be scored across the lifespan in the NemaLife chip. Overall, the capacity to generate reliable lifespan and physiological data underscores the potential of the NemaLife chip to accelerate healthspan and lifespan investigations in C. elegans.
Source: Scientific Reports
Language: English
Subfield: Aging
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $1,870
Funders: National Science Foundation, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, National Institute for Health and Care Research, Department of Health and Social Care, Versus Arthritis, National Institutes of Health, Medical Research Council, Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, NIHR Nottingham Biomedical Research Centre, National Institute on Aging, Office of Research Infrastructure Programs, National Institutes of Health
Awards: G1108382433, G1633052362, G1994913649, G2005206474, G2111793168, G2399715213, G2432555772, CAREER:Collective hydrodynamics of confined drops in microfluidic parking networks, G3113879043, G3568029750, G3770255479, G3911965767, Genetic Dissection of Mechanisms by Which Exercise Promotes Systemic Health, Establishing molecular mechanisms of and countermeasures to muscle decline in space, Centre for Musculoskeletal Ageing Research, A Strength Analysis Tool for Studying Healthy Aging via Exercise in C. elegans, DETERMINING MUSCLE STRENGTH IN SPACE-FLOWN CAENORHABDITIS ELEGANS A MAJOR IMPEDIMENT TO LONG-DURATION SPACE TRAVEL IS LOSS OF MUSCLE MASS AND STRENGT, G6671297155, G6674174487, CMAR Students, G7815188220, G7895484610, G9000028377, Caenorhabditis Genetics Center
OpenAlex ID: W3090301417