Towards a method for printing a network of chick forebrain neurons for biosensor applications

The primary goal of this work is to establish a robust, repeatable method for printing arrays of neurons. This work has two endpoints. One is to use a neural array as an experimental testbed for investigating neuronal cell growth hypotheses. The other endpoint is to enable the next generation of cell-based sensors. Herein we compare microcontact printing results previously published by our group with a new method of dip-pen printing. We present preliminary results for neurons growing on these microprinted arrays, assessing contact frequencies and growth characteristics.