Design and demonstration of an automated cell-based biosensor

Abstract

Cell-based biosensors have the capacity to respond to a wide range of analytes in a physiologically relevant manner and appear well-suited for toxicity monitoring of both known and unknown analytes. One means of acquiring cellular functional information for biosensor applications involves extracellular recording from excitable cells, which can generate noninvasive and long-term measurements. Previous work from our laboratory described a prototype portable system capable of high signal-to-noise extracellular recordings, in spite of deficiencies in thermal control, fluidics handling, and absence of data acquisition (DAQ) capability. The present work describes a cell-based biosensor system that incorporates low noise amplifier and filter boards, a two-stage thermal control system with integrated fluidics and a flexible graphical user interface for DAQ and control implemented on a personal computer. Wherever possible, commercial off-the-shelf components have been utilized for system design and fabrication. The system exhibits input-referred noise levels of 5–10 μV RMS, such that extracellular potentials exceeding 50–60 μV can be readily resolved. In addition, the biosensor system is capable of automated temperature and fluidics control. Flow rates can range from 0–2.5 ml/min, while the cell recording chamber temperature is maintained within a range of 36–37 °C. To demonstrate the capability of this system to resolve small extracellular potentials, recordings from embryonic chick cardiac myocytes have been performed.