A Mechanic Model and Velocity Optimization of Cell Microinjection

Microinjection technology has become a common means of injecting foreign materials to a target cell using a sharp-tipped glass micropipette under a microscope in medical and biological related research. Applied forces and injection speed have significant impacts on the success of cell injection. This paper presents the mechanic analysis and injection velocity optimization of cell injection. Firstly, a viscoelastic mechanic model of a compressed cell under puncture is established, the puncture force is analyzed by using ANSYS, and the parameters are identified by MATLAB. Secondly, a linear optimization model is proposed for obtaining the curve of injection velocity versus time by defining the minimum cell deformation as the objective function. Finally, the optimized injection puncture velocity trajectory is calculated by solving the proposed optimization model, and numerical simulations are conducted to demonstrate that the deformation of the cell during the puncture process is reduced with optimized puncture velocity.