The Center for IPS Cell Research and Application (Cira) of Kyoto University's Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences (Icems) has introduced a Biomark system for genetic analysis.
Cira is using the microfluidic properties of the system's integrated fluidic circuits (IFCs) to analyse selected genes in IPS (induced pluripotent stem) cells and quantify copies of specific genes transferred into a cell to generate IPS cells.
Director, Dr Shinya Yamanaka, led a group that pioneered how to successfully turn adult skin cells into the equivalent of human embryonic stem cells without using an actual embryo.
Dr Yamanaka had previously demonstrated this technique on mice, and then turned his attention to human cells.
Among many opportunities, stem cells hold the promise of allowing researchers to successfully treat incurable diseases by growing replacement tissues for patients.
The ability of Fluidigm's microfluidic devices - called integrated fluidic circuits (IFCs) - to isolate and control individual molecules provides insight into the development of biological events that influence stem cell differentiation.
Analysing the stochastic differences between individual cells typically requires studying large numbers of individual cells and genes.
Fluidigm's IFC volume requirements are so low that researchers have been able to study as many as 1,000 genes from an individual cell.
The technology facilitates thousands of single-cell experiments allowing the biological differences to manifest themselves.
