Electrical Detection, Identification, and Quantification of Exosomes

Abstract

Exosomes are intercellular communication vehicles containing cell-specific molecules that can be quantified using different biochemical or biophysical techniques. This paper explores the use of capacitance-voltage electrical measurements for the label-free detection, identification, and quantifications of exosomes. With the application of voltage, an interface effective layer is formed because of the interaction between the exosome surface and its surrounding media. The exosomes store electrical energy when electrically polarized, thus enabling its electrical detection. A specific electrical capacitance-voltage profile is attributed to the precise nature of the respective exosomes, which helps in both identification and quantification. The exosome count is estimated by calculating the impurities inside a defined volume by observing the changes in electrical parameters extracted from the capacitance-voltage measurements. This technique could be applied to count suspended silica and liposomes nanoparticles as well. This approach was found to be faster and less expensive than other existing techniques.