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Micromachines
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Feature Papers of Micromachines in Biology and Biomedicine 2020
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Feature Papers of Micromachines in Biology and Biomedicine 2020

A special issue of Micromachines (ISSN 2072-666X). This special issue belongs to the section "B：Biology and Biomedicine".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2020) | Viewed by 9200

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Nam-Trung Nguyen

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Queensland Micro- and Nanotechnology Centre, Griffith University, West Creek Road, Nathan, QLD 4111, Australia
Interests: microfluidics; nanofluidics; micro/nanomachining technologies; micro/nanoscale science; instrumentation for biomedical applications
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

We are pleased to announce the Special Issue entitled " Feature Papers of Micromachines in Biology and Biomedical Sciences 2020". In the past several years, we cooperated with excellent scholars and research groups to publish several high-impact high-quality works, which have already been cited according to Web of Science. We aim to introduce a new insight into science development or cutting-edge technology related to micromachines in the fields of biology and biomedical sciences, which will make a great contribution to the community.

This Special Issue will be a collection of high-quality papers from excellent scholars around the world. Both original research articles and comprehensive review papers are welcome. The papers will be published, free of charge, with full open access after peer review to benefit both authors and readers.

You are welcome to send short proposals for submissions of Feature Papers to our Editorial Office (micromachines@mdpi.com) before the submission. The proposals will first be evaluated by the Editors. Please note that selected full papers will still be subjected to a thorough and rigorous peer review.

We look forward to receiving your excellent work.

Prof. Nam-Trung Nguyen
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Micromachines is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • BioMEMS
  • miniaturized biosensors
  • microarrays
  • DNA chips
  • PCR chips
  • electronic noses
  • organ-on-a-chip
  • microfluidic cell culture
  • point-of-care diagnostic chips
  • μ-TAS
  • molecular imprinting
  • applications in medicine, biomedical research, drug discovery, environment, food, health, security, and safety.

Related Special Issues

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 10211 KiB  
Article
Compliant Nano-Pliers as a Biomedical Tool at the Nanoscale: Design, Simulation and Fabrication
by Alessio Buzzin, Serena Cupo, Ennio Giovine, Giampiero de Cesare and Nicola Pio Belfiore
Micromachines 2020, 11(12), 1087; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi11121087 - 08 Dec 2020
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 2637
Abstract
This paper presents the development of a multi-hinge, multi-DoF (Degrees of Freedom) nanogripper actuated by means of rotary comb drives and equipped with CSFH (Conjugate Surface Flexure Hinges), with the goal of performing complex in-plane movements at the nanoscale. The design approach, the [...] Read more.
This paper presents the development of a multi-hinge, multi-DoF (Degrees of Freedom) nanogripper actuated by means of rotary comb drives and equipped with CSFH (Conjugate Surface Flexure Hinges), with the goal of performing complex in-plane movements at the nanoscale. The design approach, the simulation and a specifically conceived single-mask fabrication process are described in detail and the achieved results are illustrated by SEM images. The first prototype presents a total overall area of (550 × 550) μm2, an active clamping area of (2 × 4) μm2, 600 nm-wide circular curved beams as flexible hinges for its motion and an aspect ratio of about 2.5. These features allow the proposed system to grasp objects a few hundred nanometers in size. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Papers of Micromachines in Biology and Biomedicine 2020)
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11 pages, 1543 KiB  
Article
Core-Shell Beads as Microreactors for Phylogrouping of E. coli Strains
by Lena Gorgannezhad, Kamalalayam Rajan Sreejith, Melody Christie, Jing Jin, Chin Hong Ooi, Mohammad Katouli, Helen Stratton and Nam-Trung Nguyen
Micromachines 2020, 11(8), 761; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi11080761 - 07 Aug 2020
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2831
Abstract
Multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is an effective tool for simultaneous detection of target genes. Nevertheless, their use has been restricted due to the intrinsic interference between primer pairs. Performing several single PCRs in an array format instead of a multiplex PCR is [...] Read more.
Multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is an effective tool for simultaneous detection of target genes. Nevertheless, their use has been restricted due to the intrinsic interference between primer pairs. Performing several single PCRs in an array format instead of a multiplex PCR is a simple way to overcome this obstacle. However, there are still major technical challenges in designing a new generation of single PCR microreactors with a small sample volume, rapid thermal cycling, and no evaporation during amplification. We report a simple and robust core-shell bead array for a series of single amplifications. Four core-shell beads with a polymer coating and PCR mixture were synthesized using liquid marble formation and subsequent photo polymerization. Each bead can detect one target gene. We constructed a customised system for thermal cycling of these core-shell beads. Phylogrouping of the E. coli strains was carried out based on the fluorescent signal of the core-shell beads. This platform can be a promising alternative for multiplex nucleic acid analyses due to its simplicity and high throughput. The platform reported here also reduces the cycling time and avoids evaporation as well as contamination of the sample during the amplification process. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Papers of Micromachines in Biology and Biomedicine 2020)
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14 pages, 1333 KiB  
Article
Transesterification in Microreactors—Overstepping Obstacles and Shifting Towards Biodiesel Production on a Microscale
by Martin Gojun, Matea Bačić, Anabela Ljubić, Anita Šalić and Bruno Zelić
Micromachines 2020, 11(5), 457; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi11050457 - 28 Apr 2020
Cited by 16 | Viewed by 3165
Abstract
Biodiesel, which was earlier used only as an alternative fuel, is now an indispensable component of commercial diesel. Conventional production processes are unable to cope with the increasing demand for biodiesel, and therefore more and more work is being done to intensify the [...] Read more.
Biodiesel, which was earlier used only as an alternative fuel, is now an indispensable component of commercial diesel. Conventional production processes are unable to cope with the increasing demand for biodiesel, and therefore more and more work is being done to intensify the existing processes. The intensification of the biodiesel production process, taking into account the environmental and economic factors, is based on increasing productivity. One way to achieve that is by reducing the volume of production units. The application of the enzymatic reaction path, while reducing the volume of process equipment to the micro-level, has significantly magnified the productivity of the biodiesel production process, which is primarily due to better mass transfer in microsystems. Additional breakthrough is the use of deep eutectic solvents (DES) instead of buffers for enzyme stabilization. In this study, a lipase from Thermomyces lanuginosus (TlL) (both commercial and produced by solid-state fermentation) was used as a catalyst for biodiesel production. Edible and waste sunflower oil, as well as methanol, were used as substrates. The reaction mediums were buffer and DES. The transesterification reaction was carried out in a batch reactor and the emphasis was made on different microreactor configurations. The highest yield of 32% for residence time of only τ = 30 min was obtained in the microreactor system with an emulsion of waste oil and a commercial enzyme suspended in a buffer. This indicates that enzymatic transesterification could be a valuable reaction path for dealing with waste oils. Furthermore, biodiesel synthesis in DES showed somewhat lower yields, but by increasing the water content in the system, the reaction could prove much better results. In the end, the effects of reaction conditions on the volumetric productivity of the process were analyzed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Papers of Micromachines in Biology and Biomedicine 2020)
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