Delivery of Amphotericin B to Candida albicans by using biomachined lab-on-A-chip

This paper investigates the ability of biomachined lab-on-A-chip (LoC) to perform drug testing of Amphotericin B to the Candida albicans. The chip is made of polydimethyl siloxane (PDMS). Molds are patterned using CNC milling followed by biomachining. CNC milling process creates channel features on the bottom mold, while biomachining forms rough surface on the channels. After the molds are created, LoC can be manufactured using those molds. Hence, contour surface on LoC's channels is also realized following the mold surface. Later, Candida albicans is seeded on the LoC's channels for 24 and 48 hours with the continuous flow of Yeast Nitrogen Base (YNB) Sterile. Then, cell viability is tested using 3-[4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium (MTT). The result shows that C. albicans could adhere and grow in the LoC channels. Based on this result, drug testing is conducted in the presence and absence of Amphotericin B (Amp B) under two schemes: without (static) and with (dynamic) the continuous flow of YNB Sterile and Amp B. After 48 hour incubation period, C. albicans biofilm of 28.72 % is shown during dynamic scheme, whereas static scheme had C. albicans biofilm of 99.32 % indicating that the dynamic scheme provides a better efficacy compared to the static scheme.