CELL CULTURE APPARATUS HAVING VARIABLE TOPOGRAPHY

• US 20090298166A1
• Filed: 05/26/2009
• Published: 12/03/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 05/30/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Corning Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Corning Incorporated
• Inventors: Wang, Jianguo, Zhang, Ying, Fang, Ye
• Application Number:
  US12/471,879
• Publication Number:
  US 20090298166A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 435/305.2
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2200/12 Specific details about manufacturing devices
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0829 Multi-well plates; Microtitration plates
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0838 Capillaries
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0893 having a very large number of wells, microfabricated wells
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/50857 using arrays or bundles of open capillaries for holding samples
• CPC Class Codes: C12M 23/12 Well or multiwell plates C12M25/04 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C12M 23/16 Microfluidic devices; Capillary tubes integrated microfluidic structures B01L3/5027; microreactors B01J19/0093

Abstract

A cell culture apparatus includes a substrate having formed therein a micro-pillared well array. The micro-pillared well array includes a plurality of micro-pillared wells. Each micro-pillared structure includes a plurality of spaced-apart micro-pillars having distal ends shaped to form a well. The well is suitable for cell culture.

Claims

1. A cell culture apparatus, comprising:

a substrate having a plurality of micro-wells wherein the micro-wells are formed from a plurality of micro-pillars.

2. The cell culture apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the micro-wells is concave.

3. The cell culture apparatus of claim 1, wherein each micro-well has a diameter of from 50 to 400 microns.

4. The cell culture apparatus of claim 1, wherein each micro-well has a height of from 5 to 100 microns.

5. The cell culture apparatus of claim 1, wherein each micro-pillar has a diameter of from 2 to 20 microns.

6. The cell culture apparatus of claim 1, wherein a spacing between adjacent micro-pillars of from 5 to 100 microns.

7. The cell culture apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least two of the micro-wells have different topographies.

8. The cell culture apparatus of claim 1, further comprising at least one micro-channel formed in the substrate between adjacent micro-wells.

9. The cell culture apparatus of claim 1, wherein the micro-wells are grouped to form a plurality of micro-well arrays.

10. The cell culture apparatus of claim 9, wherein at least one of the micro-wells in a first one of the plurality of micro-well arrays has a topography which is different from a topography of at least one of the micro-wells in a second one of the plurality of micro-well arrays.

11. The cell culture apparatus of claim 9, further comprising at least one micro-channel formed in the substrate between adjacent micro-well arrays.

12. The cell culture apparatus of claim 9, wherein at least one of the plurality of micro-well arrays comprises micro-wells having uniform topography.

13. The cell culture apparatus of claim 9, wherein at least one of the plurality of micro-well arrays comprises micro-wells having non-uniform topography.

14. The cell culture apparatus of claim 1, wherein the micro-wells are open to a surface of the substrate.

15. The cell culture apparatus of claim 1, wherein the micro-wells are recessed relative to a surface of the substrate.

16. A method of making a cell culture apparatus, comprising:

forming a plurality of microdots on a first substrate, each microdot being a negative copy of a micro-well;

forming a plurality of micro-pillars on the plurality of microdots so that the micro-pillars abut the plurality of microdots, the number of micro-pillars being substantially larger than the number of microdots so that a plurality of the micro-pillars abut with each microdot; and

transferring abutting profiles of the microdots and micro-pillars to a second substrate to form a plurality of micro-pillared structures in the second substrate.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein each microdot is a negative copy of a concave well.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein forming a plurality of microdots comprises depositing a first photoresist on the first substrate, exposing the first photoresist to a pattern of light, and developing and etching the exposed first photoresist to form a plurality of micro-posts on the first substrate.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein forming a plurality of microdots further comprises shaping the micro-posts into the microdots by resist reflow.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein forming a plurality of micro-pillars on the plurality of microdots further comprises depositing a second photoresist on the microdots, exposing the second photoresist to a pattern of light, and developing and etching the exposed second photoresist to form the micro-pillars on the microdots.

21. The method of claim 16, wherein transferring abutting profiles of the microdots and micro-pillars to a second substrate comprises molding the second substrate around the intersecting microdots and micro-pillars.