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. 2021 Jun 14;11(34):20944–20960. doi: 10.1039/d1ra02636d

Summary of capabilities of droplet flow cytometry for high-throughput single-cell analysis.

Microdroplet Target cell Application
Single-cell cultivation
W/O/W E. coli Cell culture (from proliferation to death)56
W/O/W Oral microbiota of Siberian bear Cell culture (with antibiotics)31
Human fecal microbiota from patient and healthy donors
W/O/W Mouse embryonic stem cells (E14), macrophage cells (LM-1) and embryonic fibroblasts (NIH 3T3); human T lymphocytes (Jurkat) and embryonic kidney cells (HEK 239T) Screening of cell encapsulation ratios for different types of cells18
Gelatin E. gracilis, C. reinhardtii Chlorophyll and lipid accumulation79
Agarose E. coli MIC of rifampicin determination; mutant isolation84
Molecular evolution
W/O/W E. coli Thiolactonases (100 fold increase)54
Arysulfatase50
β-Glucosidase (∼2 fold increase for lactose)23
G-type nerve agent hydrolase (104-fold increase)24
Cutinase (8 fold increase)87
Esterase (2 fold increase)90
Polymerase (1200 fold increase)92
W/O/W B. subtilis Protease (1.6 fold increase)22
W/O/W S. cerevisiae Endoglucanase-II cellulase (20 fold increase)88
Glucose oxidase (5.8 fold increase)89
Agarose-alginate polyelectrolyte E. coli Phosphotriesterase (20 fold increase)93
PEG E. coli Hydrolytic enzyme (3 fold increase)94
W/O/W Y. lipolytica Riboflavin (54 fold increase)96
W/O/W B. coagulans Lactic acid (52% more effective)97
Single-cell detection
Agarose E. coli (O175:H7 and K12) Detection of O157:H7 (0.0001%)27
Agarose Human gastric carcinoma cells (Kato III) and breast cancer cells (MDA-MB-231) Differentiation in gene expression level of a cancer biomarker (EpCAM)28
Polyacrylamide-agarose E. coli XL1 Differentiation of a tetracycline resistance gene29
Agarose T lymphocytes Secretion of cytokines: IFN-γ, IL-4, IL-10 or TGF-β30
Secretion of cytokines: IL-2, IFN-γ, TNF-α25
Cell-to-cell interaction
W/O/W S. aureu + microbes Antibiotic producer discovery32
S. aureus + S. venezuelae
S. aureus + E. coli
W/O/W Oral microbiota of Siberian bear + S. aureus Antibiotic Ami discovery31
Agarose S. cerevisiae + S. aureus Lytic hydrolase producer for S. aureus33
Agarose C. sorokiniana + Pseudomonas spp. Viable bacteria improving algal growth34
Agarose Stromal cells (MBA2) + leukemia cells (M07e) Impacts on M07e cells survival105
Agarose S. cerevisiae + murine Ba/F3 reporter cells Cytokine secretion by S. cerevisiae libraries103
Agarose P. pastoris + cancer cells (A431) Antibody secretion by P. pastoris libraries104