Mechano-optical analysis of single cells with transparent microcapillary resonators

The study of biophysical properties of single cells is becoming increasingly relevant in cell biology and pathology. The measurement and tracking of magnitudes such as cell stiffness, morphology, mass or refractive index has brought otherwise inaccessible knowledge about cell physiology, as well as innovative methods for high-throughput label-free cell classification. In this work, we present hollow resonator devices based on suspended glass microcapillaries for the simultaneous measurement of single cell buoyant mass and reflectivity with a throughput of 300 cells/minute. In the experimental methodology presented here, both magnitudes are extracted from the devices’ response to a single probe, a focused laser beam that enables simultaneous readout of changes in resonance frequency and reflected optical power of the devices as cells flow within them. Through its application to MCF-7 human breast adenocarcinoma cells and MCF-10A non-tumorigenic cells, we demonstrate that this mechano-optical technique can ...