According to one embodiment, an optical sensor includes a plurality of sensing parts two-dimensionally arranged in a matrix to form a sensor surface, and a phototransmissive sample-supporting plate arranged to be opposed to the sensing parts.

An improved tissue engineering bioreactor and testing platform has been designed that integrates multiple testing and stimulation capabilities. The system allows for growth of multiple tissue strips in parallel with mechanical and electrical stimulation, media perfusion, and the automated monitoring of contractile force and extracellular electrical activity. The system is designed to be low-cost and scalable, to provide for high-content, biofidelic, non-destructive testing of engineered muscle tissue performance that is conventionally measured using muscle-bath systems.

A embryo culture dish comprising: a first sidewall; a second sidewall attached to the first sidewall; a third sidewall attached to the second sidewall; a fourth sidewall attached to the third and first sidewalls, the four sidewalls forming an outer perimeter that forms a generally rectangular shape; a dish floor that is generally in communication with the four sidewalls, the dish floor comprising: a top surface that is at a first elevation; at least one rectangular shaped embryo culture well, the at least one rectangular shaped embryo culture well comprising: an outer perimeter that has generally a rectangular shape; a first slanted wall that comprises a first side of the rectangular shaped embryo culture well; a second slanted wall that comprises an opposite side from the first side of the rectangular shaped embryo culture well, the first and second slanted walls extend downward and towards each other until they both intersect with a well floor of the rectangular shaped embryo culture well, the well floor having a well top surface, and where the well top surface is at a second elevation, the second elevation being below the first elevation; at least one shaped well, the shaped well comprising: an outer perimeter that has generally a shape; a shaped well floor, the shaped well floor having a shaped well floor top surface, and where the shaped well floor top surface is at a third elevation, the third elevation being below the first elevation. A method of using a square time-lapse dish, the method comprising: adding a medium to a square time lapse dish; tilting the square time-lapse dish to an angle α; removing excess medium from a large well in the time-lapse dish, with the square time-lapse dish at angle α; and returning the square time-lapse dish to a horizontal orientation.

A system and method for growing and maintaining biological material including producing a protein associated with the tissue, selecting cells associated with the tissue, expanding the cells, creating at least one tissue bio-ink including the expanded cells, printing the at least one tissue bio-ink in at least one tissue growth medium mixture, growing the tissue from the printed at least one tissue bio-ink, and maintaining viability of the tissue.

The present invention relates to methods and devices for monitoring events occurred in a single cell or examining cell characteristics in a single cell in a massive parallel and real-time manner. In one embodiment, the present invention provides a single-cell culturing system for culturing and monitoring a large number of cells independently at single-cell level. In one embodiment, the present invention provides methods and devices for studying or monitoring single-cell response to an external stimulus in a massive parallel and real-time manner. In one embodiment, the present invention provides methods and devices for studying or monitoring drug response at single-cell level in a massive parallel and real-time manner.

A selection method of an iPS cell includes: at a reprogramming process to culture a cell including a plurality of combinations of initializing factors labelled with luminescent genes that are different with each other, acquiring a photon number per unit area or a photon number per unit time of each of the luminescent genes of the cell; judging whether the acquired photon number is more than a threshold that is predetermined for the acquired photon number; and when the acquired photon number is more than the threshold, selecting this cell as an objective cell for a next process.

Methods of preparing a crosslinked hydraulic fracturing fluid include combining a hydraulic fracturing fluid comprising a polyacrylamide polymer with a plurality of coated proppants. The plurality of coated proppants include a proppant particle and a resin proppant coating on the proppant particle. The resin proppant coating includes resin and a zirconium oxide crosslinker. The resin includes at least one of phenol, furan, epoxy, urethane, phenol-formaldehyde, polyester, vinyl ester, and urea aldehyde. Methods further include allowing the zirconium oxide crosslinker within the resin proppant coating to crosslink the polyacrylamide polymer within the hydraulic fracturing fluid at a pH of at least 10, thereby forming the crosslinked hydraulic fracturing fluid.

A microfluidic chip system includes an input for receiving the biologic sample, and a first reading window for enabling a detection of the biologic material within the biologic sample. A first plurality of pathways is provided each for determining a treatment agent providing a best treatment efficacy for the predetermined biologic material. A first micro-pump is provided for pumping a portion of the biologic sample into each of the first plurality of pathways. A second plurality of pathways is provided, each for determining a dosage level of a particular one of the plurality of treatment agents with respect to the predetermined biologic material. A plurality of second micro-pumps are provided for pumping a second portion of the biologic sample into a selected one of the second plurality of pathways responsive to the determination of treatment efficacy of the treatment agent providing a best treatment of the predetermined biologic material.

A method for monitoring species of algae for stress comprises growing a test set of algae of a given species, applying a stress of a predetermined kind to some of the algae, and irradiating the algae at a predetermined first set of wavelengths. The algae are then monitored at a predetermined second set of wavelengths to detect fluorescence and/or absorbance carried out on the first set of wavelengths by the stressed algae. The detected fluorescence and/or absorbance is compared for each irradiation wavelength between the stressed algae and unstressed algae to find signs indicating the applied stress. There is then a stage of searching through combinations of respective irradiation wavelengths and detected wavelengths to find a minimal set of irradiating and detected wavelengths that detects the stress. The smallest size set is then used in irradiating further sets of algae of the tested species to detect the given stress.

A method for dynamic evolution and/or adaptation and monitoring of characteristics in living cells is provided, wherein the method may be performed at a microfluidic-enabled cell-culture device comprising pneumatic layer for directing flow of fluid to a plurality of individually addressable wells, and one or more sensors configured to detect data regarding environments inside one or more of the plurality of wells. The method may involve culturing a population of cells in a first well of the plurality of wells, perturbing one or more characteristics of an environment in the first well following the culturing of the population of cells, monitoring one or more characteristics of the population of cells in the first well, and removing all or part of the evolved/adapted population of cells from the first well.