Three-Dimensional Bio-Micromanipulation under the Microscope

Bio-micromanipulation is important for Biology and Bio-engineering field. However, operation is very difficult, since the object is very small, kept in the liquid, and observed by the optical microscope. We have been developing a new micromanipulation system for anatomical operation of the micro object such as an em bryo, cell, and microbe. The image of the microscope is two-dimensional, so it is hard to manipulate the target in the 3-D space. To improve the manipulation work, we proposed the 3-D bio-micromanipulation system combined with the Virtual Reality (VR) space. Here we proposed the 3-D modeling method of the object to present the 3-D visual information to the operator and improved the operation environment. In this system, we still have difficulty to change the orientation of the microscopic object by manipulating a mechanical manipulator. The Bio-aligner, we proposed, is a micro device for the posture control of an object. We developed a two-dimensional Bio-aligner by microfabrication. Here we show its fabrication process and basic rotating experiment with yeast cells.