On June 30, the top-tier journal in INSTRUMENTS & INSTRUMENTATION, Microsystems & Nanoengineering (Impact Factor: 11.1), published the latest research achievement of our Micro/Nano Manufacturing team. The article, entitled “Mechanistic insights into cellular deformation enable enhanced extensional-flow cytometry for label-free classification and sorting”, was authored by Huasheng Zhuo, a Master’s student of the 2024 cohort, as the first author, with Professors Guanglan Liao and Associate Professor Zhiyong Liu serving as corresponding authors.
Cellular mechanical properties, such as deformability and stiffness, are recognized as critical label-free indicators of tumor invasiveness, immune activation, and stem cell differentiation potential. However, existing deformation-based cytometry techniques often suffer from limited sensitivity, poor interpretability, and incompatibility with real-time sorting modules, posing challenges for clinical translation. To address these limitations, the research team developed a novel extensional-flow microfluidic cytometry platform. By integrating fluid–structure interaction simulations to reinterpret cellular deformation dynamics, and combining lightweight detection algorithms with attention modules, the platform achieves high-precision image recognition and real-time sorting. This study represents the first demonstration of real-time cell sorting under extensional flow fields, establishing a complete technological chain from mechanistic analysis to functional cytometry. The work provides interpretable and scalable solutions for tumor cell phenotyping, functional screening, and precision medicine.
The platform consists of a cross-channel extensional flow field, lightweight detection algorithms, and a charge-driven sorting module. Through fluid–structure coupling simulations, the team revealed near-linear elastic behavior of cells under extensional flow, enabling image features to reliably reflect mechanical properties. With self-localizing filters and normalized block attention modules, the system achieved high-precision image recognition (mAP 96.8%) and real-time sorting with maintained cell viability (purity 90.2% ± 4.4%). This breakthrough overcomes the bottlenecks of traditional deformation cytometry in interpretability and real-time functionality.
Design and Construction of Microfluidic Platform
The team is further exploring applications of this platform in functional screening of tumor cell subpopulations, rapid assessment of immune cell activation, and monitoring of stem cell differentiation processes. This work highlights the broad potential of high-performance extensional-flow cytometry in disease diagnostics, drug screening, and personalized medicine.
Experimental Validation of Cell Deformation and Viability
This research was supported by the Interdisciplinary Research Program of Huazhong University of Science and Technology and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities.
Original paper link: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41378-026-01336-8
