Dynamic Electroporation Model Evaluation on Rabbit Tissues.

Area of Science:

• Biophysics
• Computational Biology
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Biological electroporation involves creating temporary pores in cell membranes using electric fields.
• Accurate modeling of electroporation is crucial for understanding its effects on biological tissues.
• Existing models require validation against experimental data for diverse tissue types.

Purpose of the Study:

• To validate a dynamic model of biological electroporation in tissues.
• To compare simulation results with experimental data for electrical current and temperature.
• To assess the performance of different computational methods, including Equivalent Circuit Method and Finite Element Method.

Main Methods:

• Computational simulations using Equivalent Circuit Method (ECM) and Finite Element Method (FEM).
• Inclusion of dielectric dispersion in biological tissues for the ECM.
• Experimental application of voltage pulses and ramps to rabbit liver, kidney, and heart tissues using needle electrodes.

Main Results:

• Good agreement between simulated and experimental results, with mean errors below 15%.
• Simulated results generally fell within the experimental standard deviation.
• The FEM simulation using commercial software showed significant error (~50%) at 50 kHz due to the exclusion of dielectric dispersion.

Conclusions:

• The validated dynamic model accurately predicts electrical current and temperature changes during biological electroporation.
• The Equivalent Circuit Method, incorporating dielectric dispersion, provides reliable simulation results.
• Limitations of commercial FEM software in modeling electroporation at specific frequencies were identified.