A Bubble-Free and Low-Shear-Stress Microfluidic Device for High-Quality Monitoring of Zebrafish Embryonic Development

This paper presents a microfluidic device for the capture and culture of zebrafish embryos and real-time monitoring of early-stage embryonic development. Innovative claims include: (i) rapid-prototyping and low-cost fabrication and easy-to-operate device; (ii) the use of a degassing chamber to remove air bubbles during live imaging; and (iii) the optimal embryo-trapping regime to reduce potential shear stress on zebrafish embryos. Long-term monitoring of zebrafish embryogenesis at early stages verifies that the microfluidic device enables the reliable capture and culturing of zebrafish embryos under continuous medium perfusion and high-quality screening of their developmental dynamics.