Worm-on-a-chip. Chemotaxis by nematodes in microfluidic systems

Abstract: A microfluidic chip was constructed and used for monitoring chemotaxis by nematodes. It was built up by an artificial dirt array made of glass, a perforated PDMS sheet and PMMA plate for fluidic connections. The device was held together by the pressure of clamps without any chemical bonding. The artificial dirt array was tested on pine wood nematodes and Caenorhabditis elegans. The response by Caenorhabditis elegans when exposed for gradients of salinity and bacteria contaminated water were tested.