Microfabricated polymer-metal biosensors for multifarious data collection from electrogenic cellular models

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Materials Science
• Biosensing Technologies

Background:

• Microphysiological systems (MPS) are advancing tissue culture complexity for biological research.
• Accurate cellular constructs in MPS require integrated sensing for detailed data acquisition.
• Existing biosensor platforms need further development for multiplexed data collection.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and characterize a novel polymer-metal compound biosensor for microphysiological systems.
• To demonstrate a facile technology for compound biosensing with custom modeling.
• To enable comprehensive data collection from electrogenic cellular constructs.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of a compound chip featuring 3D microelectrodes, 3D microfluidics, interdigitated electrodes (IDEs), and a microheater.
• Electrical/electrochemical characterization using impedance and phase recordings at 1 kHz.
• High-frequency (~1 MHz) impedimetric analysis of localized temperature recordings.
• Antibody-conjugation for analyte (l-glutamine) binding analysis via IDEs.
• Microfluidic perfusion modeling for localized chemical stimulation.

Main Results:

• Successful design, development, and characterization of the polymer-metal compound biosensor.
• Equivalent electrical circuit modeling for process parameter extraction from sensor data.
• Demonstrated analyte detection (l-glutamine) and microfluidic integration capabilities.
• Validation of the biosensor platform for comprehensive data collection in MPS.

Conclusions:

• The developed polymer-metal biosensor offers an accessible platform for advanced sensing in MPS.
• This technology facilitates detailed data acquisition from cellular constructs.
• The biosensor is poised to significantly contribute to future breakthroughs in biological research using MPS.