A low-cost, high-throughput microfluidic nano-culture platform for functional metagenomics
Publication Date
1-1-2022
Document Type
Article
Publication Title
Biotechnology Progress
DOI
10.1002/btpr.3317
Abstract
Functional metagenomics is an attractive culture-independent approach for functional screening of diverse microbiomes to identify known and novel genes. Since functional screening can involve sifting through tens of thousands of metagenomic library clones, an easy high-throughput screening approach is desirable. Here, we demonstrate a proof-of-concept application of a low-cost, high-throughput droplet based microfluidic assay to the selection of antibiotic resistance genes from a soil metagenomic library. Metagenomic library members encapsulated in nanoliter volume water-in-oil droplets were printed on glass slides robotically, and cell growth in individual drops in the presence of ampicillin was imaged and quantified to identify ampicillin-resistant clones. From the hits, true positives were confirmed by sequencing and functional validation. The ease of liquid handling, ease of set-up, low cost, and robust workflow makes the droplet-based nano-culture platform a promising candidate for screening and selection assays for functional metagenomic libraries.
Funding Number
R15AI138146
Funding Sponsor
National Institutes of Health
Keywords
antibiotic resistance, droplet, metagenomic library, screening
Department
Chemical and Materials Engineering
Recommended Citation
Manpreet Kaur, Aura Ferreiro, Cheng Yu Hung, Gautam Dantas, and Anand K. Ramasubramanian. "A low-cost, high-throughput microfluidic nano-culture platform for functional metagenomics" Biotechnology Progress (2022). https://doi.org/10.1002/btpr.3317
