{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,1]],"date-time":"2026-07-01T02:07:21Z","timestamp":1782871641526,"version":"3.54.5"},"reference-count":38,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"9","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2022,4,21]],"date-time":"2022-04-21T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1650499200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Sensors"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Spheroids have become an essential tool in preclinical cancer research. The uniformity of spheroids is a critical parameter in drug test results. Spheroids form by self-assembly of cells. Hence, the control of homogeneity of spheroids in terms of size, shape, and density is challenging. We developed surface-optimized polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) biochip platforms for uniform spheroid formation on-chip. These biochips were surface modified with 10% bovine serum albumin (BSA) to effectively suppress cell adhesion on the PDMS surface. These surface-optimized platforms facilitate cell self-aggregations to produce homogenous non-scaffold-based spheroids. We produced uniform spheroids on these biochips using six different established human cell lines and a co-culture model. Here, we observe that the concentration of the BSA is important in blocking cell adhesion to the PDMS surfaces. Biochips treated with 3% BSA demonstrated cell repellent properties similar to the bare PDMS surfaces. This work highlights the importance of surface modification on spheroid production on PDMS-based microfluidic devices.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/s22093191","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2022,4,24]],"date-time":"2022-04-24T00:45:21Z","timestamp":1650761121000},"page":"3191","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":7,"title":["Surface Optimization and Design Adaptation toward Spheroid Formation On-Chip"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"22","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6836-4797","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Neda","family":"Azizipour","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Institut de G\u00e9nie Biom\u00e9dical, Polytechnique Montr\u00e9al, Montr\u00e9al, QC H3C 3A7, Canada"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2522-2692","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Rahi","family":"Avazpour","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Chemical Engineering, Polytechnique Montr\u00e9al, Montr\u00e9al, QC H3C 3A7, Canada"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4137-7272","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Mohamad","family":"Sawan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institut de G\u00e9nie Biom\u00e9dical, Polytechnique Montr\u00e9al, Montr\u00e9al, QC H3C 3A7, Canada"},{"name":"Polystim Neurotech Laboratory, Electrical Engineering Department, Polytechnique Montr\u00e9al, Montr\u00e9al, QC H3T 1J4, Canada"},{"name":"CenBRAIN Laboratory, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, School of Engineering, Westlake University, Hangzhou 310024, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9944-4538","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Abdellah","family":"Ajji","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institut de G\u00e9nie Biom\u00e9dical, Polytechnique Montr\u00e9al, Montr\u00e9al, QC H3C 3A7, Canada"},{"name":"The Research Center for High Performance Polymer and Composite Systems, Chemical Engineering Department, Polytechnique Montr\u00e9al, Montr\u00e9al, QC H3C 3A7, Canada"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6593-8177","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Derek","family":"H. Rosenzweig","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Surgery, McGill University, Montr\u00e9al, QC H3G 1A4, Canada"},{"name":"Injury, Repair and Recovery Program, Research Institute of McGill University Health Centre, Montr\u00e9al, QC H3H 2R9, Canada"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2022,4,21]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","unstructured":"(2022, January 24). Statistics Canada. 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