2017/11/01 by Thomas Litschel, Michael M. Norton, Vardges Tserunyan +1 · 43 citations
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · Engineering · Neuroscience · Physics and Astronomy · #3D Printing in Biomedical Research #Advanced Fluorescence Microscopy Techniques #Artificial neural network #Axon Guidance and Neuronal Signaling #Coupling (piping) #Coupling strength #Microfluidics #Network topology #Topology (electrical circuits) #Variety (cybernetics) #nlin.PS #physics.bio-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.1039/c7lc01187c
published in Lab on a Chip 18(5), 714-722 (Royal Society of Chemistry)
arxiv created 2017/11/01 · openalex created_date 2017/11/10 · openalex publication_date 2017/12/15 · arxiv updated 2018/01/08 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
We present an experimental system of networks of coupled non-linear chemical reactors, which we theoretically model within a reaction-diffusion framework. The networks consist of patterned arrays of diffusively coupled nanoliter-scale reactors containing the Belousov-Zhabotinsky (BZ) reaction. Microfluidic fabrication techniques are developed that provide the ability to vary the network topology and the reactor coupling strength and offer the freedom to choose whether an arbitrary reactor is inhibitory or excitatory coupled to its neighbor. This versatile experimental and theoretical framework can be used to create a wide variety of chemical networks. Here we design, construct and characterize chemical networks that achieve the complexity of central pattern generators (CPGs), which are found in the autonomic nervous system of a variety of organisms.