Ultrasensitive two-dimensional material-based MCF-7 cancer cell sensor driven by perturbation processes.

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Cell lipid composition changes can indicate apoptosis or diseases like cancer.
• Traditional fluorescence probes for micro-change detection are complex and non-reusable, limiting cell monitoring.
• Developing advanced biosensors is crucial for early disease detection.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a direct current (DC) resistance sensor for cancer cell-specific detection.
• To utilize two-dimensional (2D) molybdenum disulfide (MoS₂) nanosheets for biosensing applications.
• To investigate the potential of MoS₂ nanosheets in detecting micro-changes in cancer cell membranes.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of a DC resistance sensor using 2D MoS₂ nanosheets.
• Atomistic molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to study MoS₂-lipid bilayer interactions.
• Incubation of cancer cells with MoS₂ nanosheets and measurement of electrical resistance.

Main Results:

• MD simulations revealed lipid bilayer perturbations increase resistance upon interaction with MoS₂.
• Observed an increase in electrical resistance when cancer cells were incubated with MoS₂ nanosheets.
• Demonstrated a correlation between resistance and MCF-7 breast cancer cell population, indicating cell-dependent sensitivity.

Conclusions:

• The MoS₂-based DC resistance sensor enables sensitive, cell population-dependent detection of cancer cells.
• Achieved a detection limit of approximately 3 × 10³ cells, surpassing current electrical biosensors.
• This 2D material-based electrical resistance framework shows promise for early cancer detection and reducing recurrence risk.