1

Folch, A. and Toner, M. "Microengineering of Cellular Interactions", Annual Rev. of Biomedical Engineering 2, 227 (2000).

This paper is a review that covers microfabrication techniques used to modulate cell-substrate, cell-cell, and cell-medium interactions.
   
2 Tourovskaia, A., Barber, T., Wickes, B., Hirdes, D., Grin, B., Castner, D. G., Healy, K. E., and Folch, A. "Micropatterns of Chemisorbed Cell Adhesion-Repellent Films Using Oxygen Plasma Etching and Elastomeric Masks", Langmuir 19, 4754 (2002).

This paper reports a method to confine cells for many days to micropatterns of proteins adsorbed on glass.

     
3 Chen, C., Hirdes, D., and Folch, A. "Gray-Scale Photolithography Using Microfluidic Photomasks", Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences 100, 1499 (2003) --> see feature in the New York Times, Materials Today, Science News, Physics World, Photonics Spectra, Biophotonics International, and Physics Web.
This paper reports the development of photolithographic masks that contain fluidic features of tunable opacity, yielding unique 3D microstructures.
   
4 Li, N., Tourovskaia, A., and Folch, A. "Biology on a Chip: Microfabrication in Cell Culture Studies", Critical Reviews in Biomedical Engineering 31, 68 (2003).
This paper reviews work on cell culture studies that incorporate microfabrication in order to modulate the microenvironment of cells.
5 Neils, C. M., Tyree, Z., Finlayson, B., and Folch, A. "Combinatorial Mixing of Microfluidic Streams", Lab on a Chip 4, 342 (2004).
In this paper we describe a microfluidic mixer that outputs all the sixteen combinations of four titrations of two dyes in continuous flow.
     
6 Hsu, C.-H., Chen, C., and Folch, A. "'Microcanals' for Micropipette Access to Single Cells in Microfluidic Environments", Lab on a Chip 4, 420 (2004) --> featured in the RSC's Chemical Biology Virtual Journal (2004, Iss. 19).
This paper reports the first implementation of open-air microfluidic channels and their use to probe single cells with micropipettes within a microfluidic environment.
     
7 Hoffman, J., Shao, J., Hsu, C.-H., and Folch, A. "Elastomeric Molds with Tunable Microtopographies", Advanced Materials 16, 2201 (2004).
This paper reports a micromolding method based on molds whose microtopography can be tuned by the user, thereby producing features that are difficult or impossible to obtain by traditional photolithography.
     
8 Tourovskaia, A., Figueroa-Masot, X. and Folch, A., "Differentiation-on-a-chip: A Microfluidic Platform for Long-Term Cell Culture Studies", Lab on a Chip 5, 14 (2005) --> cited in the cover and featured in Sample Content (thus available free of charge).
This paper demonstrates the first 2-week-long cell culture in a (optionally, heterogeneous) microfluidic environment.
     
9 Hsu, C.-H., Chen, C., and Folch, A. "Microfluidic Devices with Tunable Microtopographies", Applied Physics Letters 86, 023508 (2005) --> featured in the Virtual Journal of Nanoscale Science & Technology (Vol. 11, Iss. 2) and in the Virtual Journal of Biological Physics Research (Vol. 9, Iss. 2).
This paper implements our tunable-microtopography technique inside a microfluidic channel to demonstrate novel micromixers and fluid traps.
     
10 Keenan, T.M., Hooker, A., Spilker, M. E., Boggy, G. J., Li, N., Vicini, P., and Folch, A. "Automated Identification of Axonal Growth Cones in Time-Lapse Image Sequences", J. Neurosci. Methods 151, 232 (2005).
This paper reports an image recognition software to track and quantitate the growth of axons from sequences of time-lapse phase-contrast micrographs of neurons growing on a flat substrate.
     
11 Rettig, J.R. and Folch, A. "Large-Scale Single-Cell Trapping and Imaging Using Microwell Arrays", Analytical Chemistry 77, 5628 (2005).
This article demonstrates the use of microwells to trap single cells in large arrays.
     
12 Kosar, T.F., Chen, C., Stucky, N.L., and Folch, A. "Arrays of
Microfluidically-Addressable Nanoholes", Journal of Biomedical Nanotechnology 1, 161 (2005).
This paper reports the fabrication of nanoholes on silicon nitride membranes to stimulate cells from underneath the cell culture surface.
     
13 Stucky, N.L., Chen, C., Kosar, T.F., and Folch, A. "Fabrication of Microfluidically-Accessible Planar Nanoholes on Elastomeric Substrates", Journal of Biomedical Nanotechnology 1, 384 (2005).
This paper reports the fabrication of nanoholes on silicon nitride membranes to stimulate cells from underneath the cell culture surface.
     
15 Li, N., Hsu, C.-H., and Folch, A. "Parallel mixing of Photolithographically-Defined Nanoliter Volumes Using Elastomeric Microvalve Arrays", Electrophoresis 26, 3758 (2005).
This article demonstrates the use of microvalve arrays to create multiple titrations simultaneously (demonstration of a calcium-sensitive dye calibration).
   
16 Li, N. and Folch, A. "Integration of topographical and biochemical cues by axons during growth on microfabricated 3-D substrates", Experimental Cell Research 311, 307 (2005).
This paper reports effects of the microscale substrate composition and topography on axon growth in cultured embryonic cortical neurons.
     
17 T.F. Kosar, Tourovskaia, A., Figueroa-Masot, X., Adams, M., and Folch, A. "A Nanofabricated Planar Aperture as a Mimic of the Nerve-Muscle Contact During Synaptogenesis", Lab Chip 6, 632 (2006). --> featured in Chemical Biology (top-viewed article in May 2006) and in the Faculty of 1000 Biology.
This article demonstrates that nanofluidic delivery of soluble agrin to myotubes induces local clustering of acetylcholine receptors.
     
18 Tourovskaia, A., T.F. Kosar, and Folch, A. "Local Induction of Acetylcholine Receptor Clustering in Myotube Cultures Using Microfluidic Application of Agrin", Biophysical Journal 90, 2192 (2006).
This paper shows the local clustering of acetylcholine receptors on selected areas of cultured myotubes using microfluidic focal application of agrin.
     
19 Frevert, C.W., Boggy, G., Keenan, T.M., and Folch, A. "Measurement of Cell Migration in Response to an Evolving Radial Chemokine Gradient Triggered by a Microvalve", Lab on a Chip 6, 849 (2006) --> cited in the cover.
In this paper we use a microfluidic valve to create chemotactic gradients and obtain neutrophil migration measurements correlated with spatiotemporal gradient values.
     
20 Keenan, T.M., Hsu, C.-H., and Folch, A. "Microfluidic "Jets" for Generating Steady-State Gradients of Soluble Molecules on Open Surfaces", Applied Physics Letters 89, 114103 (2006) --> featured in the Virtual Journal of Nanoscale Science & Technology (Vol. 14, Iss. 13) and in the Virtual Journal of Biological Physics Research (Vol. 12, Iss. 6).
In this paper we demonstrate the use of microfluidic "jets" to create dynamic gradients of soluble molecules on open surfaces.
   
21 Tourovskaia, A., Figueroa-Masot, X. and Folch, A., "Long-term Microfluidic Cultures of Myotube Microarrays for High-Throughput Focal Stimulation ", Nature Protocols 1, 1092 (2006).
In this paper we report the precise protocols for culturing and focally stimulating single-myotube microarrays in a microfluidic device.
   
22

Chen, C. and Folch, A., "A High-Performance Elastomeric Patch Clamp Chip", Lab on a Chip (2006), 6, 1338.

We report a microfluidic patch clamp chip that allows for performing whole-cell recordings with unprecedented yields and exchanges of the extracellular and intracellular solutions.
     
23 Hsu, C.-H. and Folch, A., "Spatiotemporally- Complex Concentration Profiles Using a Tunable Chaotic Micromixer", Applied Physics Letters 89, 144102 (2006) --> featured in the Virtual Journal of Nanoscale Science & Technology (Vol. 14, Iss. 16).
We demonstrate the generation of temporal sequences of complex concentration profiles using a single device containing tunable microtopographies.
   
24 Lam, E.W., Cooksey, G.A., Finlayson, B.A., and Folch, A., "Microfluidic Circuits with Tunable Flow Resistances", Applied Physics Letters (2006), 89, 164105 (2006).
In this paper we present the concept and implementation of a microfluidic "resistor" (a segment of a microchannel with user-controlled flow resistance).