A New Portable In Vitro Exposure Cassette for Aerosol Sampling

This protocol introduces a new in vitro exposure system, capable of being worn, including its characterization and performance. Air-liquid interface (ALI) in vitro exposure systems are often large and bulky, making transport to the field and operation at the source of emission or within the breathing zone difficult. Through miniaturization of these systems, the lab can be brought to the field, expediting processing time and providing a more appropriate exposure method that does not alter the aerosol prior to contacting the cells. The Portable In vitro Exposure Cassette (PIVEC) adapts a 37 mm filter cassette to allow for in vitro toxicity testing outside of a traditional laboratory setting. The PIVEC was characterized using three sizes of copper nanoparticles to determine deposition efficiency based on gravimetric and particle number concentration analysis. Initial cytotoxicity experiments were performed with exposed lung cells to determine the ability of the system to deposit particles while maintaining cell viability. The PIVEC provides a similar or increased deposition efficiency when comparing to available perpendicular flow in vitro exposure devices. Despite the lower sample throughput, the small size gives some advantages to the current in vitro ALI exposure systems. These include the ability to be worn for personal monitoring, mobility from the laboratory to the source of emission, and the option to set-up multiple systems for spatial resolution while maintaining a lower user cost. The PIVEC is a system capable of collecting aerosols in the field and within the breathing zone onto an air-interfaced, in vitro model.