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FAQs

Are the products sterile when the customer receive them?

Yes, all of the chips undergo a sterilization post-treatment and are stored in individual packages. Beonchip guarantees the sterilization and hydrophilicity of the chips up to 6 months after shipment.

Are the chips autofluorescense?

No, our chips are made of COP, a plastic material that doesn´t present autofluorescence. All our products can be used for fluorescence experiments. In addition, the Be-Transflow is available with a black upper piece in order to minimize any spurious reflections of the laser in the culture well, in order to optimize the fluorescence images.

What type of connectors are needed in order to use BEOnChip´s products?

We offer in our shop two connector kits compatible with any type of microfluidic flow control system (syringe pumps, peristaltic pumps, pressure based flow control systems…). The choice of the connector kit depends on the type of microfluidic flow control at your disposal:

• Connector kit 1 for peristaltic and syringe pumps: 10 connectors + 2 m of tygon tube 3/32″ OD 1/32 ID
• Connector kit 2 for pressure based microfluidic flow control system: 10 conectors,10 ferrules for microfluidic control system y 1,5 m FEP Tubing 1/16″ OD x 1/32″ ID.

If the shear stress is going to be applied using a rocker, there is no need for connectors, but it is necessary to use the chip lids during the experiment to avoid contamination (check video How to use a rocker for mechanical stimulation of the cell culture).

Does COP is present non-specific adsorption?

COP is an inert material that is naturally lipophobic and does not suffer from non-specific adsorption as other silicone materials like PDMS. Therefore, its an ideal candidate for drug efficacy or toxicity platforms and does not interact with the culture medium.

Can isopropanol or acetonebe used on Beonchip´s products?

Yes, COP is highly resistant to chemicals such as alcohols, acids or aliphatic compounds.

How does the oxygen reach the cells if COP is impermeable?

Oxygen can be supplied to the cells via the culture medium. In fact, impermeability is one of the greatest advantages our products for Organ on chip applications since it allows the precise control of the oxygen levels in the cell culture and even reproduce the hypoxia conditions that most tissues undergo in the human body.

Is it possible to recover the cells after using a chip?

Cell recovery from the devices for downstream applications is possible. After removing medium and washing with PBS, perfuse your choice cell detachment solution and incubate the time needed. Neutralize your solution by adding an inactivator to the reservoirs. You may tilt the device manually so that it is well mixed. Also, you may resuspend actively the liquid with the tip in the inlet/outlet well hole to help cell detachment. Check under the microscope. Finally, collect your cells aspirating all the liquid inside the device. We also provide an illustration of the process of extracting the cells step by step in the section technology.

Is it possible to modify some of the characteristics of Beonchip´s standard products?

We offer the possibility of customizing our products. Features such as the pore size of the membrane in the BE-Transflow of BE-Doubleflow, or the channel size and shape can be modified. Check the complete list of customizable features in the Product tab for further information. In addition, Beonchip also manufactures completely new products for customers. If you have an idea of a microfluidic device or labware for biomedical or pharmaceutical applications, contact us to get a quotation for the prototype and production of your design. We can assist you to walk the path from an idea to mass production.

Can we use our own membranes on BEonchip´s products?

Yes. Among the customizable options of our products we offer to create a batch using your own membrane during production and providing the devices without a base so that they can be bonded in site to any base using a strong biocompatible adhesive. For more information check the product section.

Is it possible to connect several chips in series?

Yes, using our connectors it is possible to connect several chips in series. This is often done to study the crosstalk between different tissues.

Publications

1. De Miguel, D. et al. TRAIL-coated lipid-nanoparticles overcome resistance to soluble recombinant TRAIL in non-small cell lung cancer cells. Nanotechnology 27, 185101 (2016).

2. Ayuso, J. M. et al. SU-8 Based Microdevices to Study Self-Induced Chemotaxis in 3D Microenvironments. Front. Mater. 2, 1–10 (2015).

3. De Miguel, D. et al. TRAIL-coated lipid-nanoparticles overcome resistance to soluble recombinant TRAIL in non-small cell lung cancer cells. Nanotechnology 27, 185101 (2016).

4. De Miguel, D. et al. Improved Anti-Tumor Activity of Novel Highly Bioactive Liposome-Bound TRAIL in Breast Cancer Cells. Recent Pat. Anticancer. Drug Discov. 11, 197–214 (2016).

5. De Miguel, D. et al. High-order TRAIL oligomer formation in TRAIL-coated lipid nanoparticles enhances DR5 cross-linking and increases antitumour effect against colon cancer. Cancer Lett. 383, 250–260 (2016).

6. Ayuso, J. M. et al. Development and characterization of a microfluidic model of the tumour microenvironment. Sci. Rep. 6, 36086 (2016).

7. Martínez-gonzález, A. et al. Systems Biology of Tumor Microenvironment. vol. 936 (Springer International Publishing, 2016).

8. Ayuso, J. M. et al. Glioblastoma on a microfluidic chip: Generating pseudopalisades and enhancing aggressiveness through blood vessel obstruction events. Neuro. Oncol. 19, now230 (2017).

9. Virumbrales-Muñoz, M. et al. Enabling cell recovery from 3D cell culture microfluidic devices for tumour microenvironment biomarker profiling. Sci. Rep. 9, (2019).
10. González-Lana, S. Surface modifications of COP-based microfluidic devices for improved immobilisation of hydrogel proteins: long-term 3D culture with contractile cell types and ischaemia model. LAB ON A CHIP. (2023).
11. Stankovic, T. et al.  In vitro biomimetic models for glioblastoma-a promising tool for drug response studies. DRUG RESISTANCE UPDATES. 55, pp. 100753. (2021).
12. Pérez-Aliacar. M. et al. Predicting cell behaviour parameters from glioblastoma on a chip images. A deep learning pproach. Computers in Biology and Medicine. 135, pp. 104547 (2021).
13. Virumbrales-Muñoz M et al. Enabling cell recovery from 3D cell culture microfluidic devices for tumour microenvironment biomarker profiling. Sci Rep. (2019).
14. Ayensa-Jiménez, J. et al. Mathematical formulation and parametric analysis of in vitro cell models in microfluidic devices: application to different stages of glioblastoma evolution. SCIENTIFIC REPORTS. 10 – 1, pp. 21193 (2020).
15. Ayensa-Jiménez, J. et al. M. Analysis of the parametric correlation in mathematical modeling of in vitro glioblastoma evolution using copulas. MATHEMATICS. 9 – 1, pp. 27 (2021).
16. Fernandez-Carro, E. et al. ‘Nanoparticles Stokes radius assessment through permeability coefficient determination within a new stratified epithelium on-chip model’, Artificial cells, nanomedicine, and biotechnology, 51(1), pp. 466–475. (2023).