Neuronal biosensors

Buch R M and Rechnitz G A 1989 Neuronal biosensors Anal. Chem. 61533A-42A Shear J B, Fishman H A, Allbritton N L, Garigan D, Zare R N and Scheller R H 1995 Single cells as biosensors for chemical separations Science 267 74-7 Taylor R F 1991 Commercially available supports for protein immobilization Protein Immobilization Fundamentals and Applications ed R F Taylor (New York Dekker) pp 139-60... 

Buch, R. M., Rechnitz, G. A., Neuronal Biosensors , Anai. Chem. 61 (1989) 533A-542A. 

The term biocompatibility is defined as the ability of a material to perform with an appropriate host response in a specific situation" (Williams 2008). A biocompatible material can be inert, where it would not induce a host immune response and have little or no toxic properties. A biocompatible material can also be bioactive, initiating a controlled physiological response. For porous silicon, bioactive properties were initially suggested based on the observation that hydroxyapatite (HA) crystals grow on microporous silicon films. HA has implications for bone tissue implants and bone tissue engineering (Canham 1995). An extension of this work showed that an applied cathodic current was able to further promote calcification on the surface (Canham et al. 1996). More recently, Moxon et al. showed another example of bioactive porous silicon where the material promoted neuron viability when inserted into rat brains as a potential neuronal biosensor, whereas planar silicon showed significantly fewer viable neurons surrounding the implant site (Moxon et al. 2007). 

Buch R.M. and Rechnitz G.A. (1989) Neuronal biosensors. Anal. Chem., 61, 533A-542A. 

M. Grattarola and G. Massobrio, Bioelectronics Handbook MOSFETs, Biosensors and Neurons. McGraw-Hill, New York (1998). 

Glutamate Sensors. Glutamate occurs in unusually high concentrations in the brain and has been shown to stimulate neuronal activity (35). The role of this species as a neurotransmitter is not completely understood, however, and there has been a great deal of research aimed at studying its excitatory function in the brain. A selective biosensor for rapid determination of glutamate would be of great importance to neurochemical researchers. 

CNTs and other nano-sized carbon structures are promising materials for bioapplications, which was predicted even previous to their discovery. These nanoparticles have been applied in bioimaging and drag delivery, as implant materials and scaffolds for tissue growth, to modulate neuronal development and for lipid bilayer membranes. Considerable research has been done in the field of biosensors. Novel optical properties of CNTs have made them potential quantum dot sensors, as well as light emitters. Electrical conductance of CNTs has been exploited for field transistor based biosensors. CNTs and other nano-sized carbon structures are considered third generation amperometric biosensors, where direct electron transfer between the enzyme active center and the transducer takes place. Nanoparticle functionalization is required to achieve their full potential in many fields, including bio-applications. 

Neuron cells Neuron cells are generally electrically excitable, and their electrophysiological property changes upon physical and chemical stimulation. For this reason neuron cells are widely used as the sensing element in cell-based biosensors [42], Primary rat pup astrocytes are also used in co-culture with endothelial cells for the in vitro mimic of blood-brain barrier (BBB) [43],... 

Gross GW, Rhoades BK, Azzazy HM, Wu MC. The use of neuronal networks on multielectrode arrays as biosensors. Biosens Bioelectron 1995 10 553-67. 

Bruce Hammock developed the section on new immunochemical techniques. These chapters describe investigation of disease resistance in plants neuronal development in insect embryos pesticide residue analysis for plant diagnostics and quarantine and the development of a biosensor for applying monoclonal antibodies and microelectronics for environmental analysis. 

Vale-Gonzalez, C. et al., Study of the neuronal effects of ouabain and palytoxin and their binding to Na,K-ATPases using an optical biosensor, Toxicon, 2007 (in press). 

Breer H., Sense of smell Signal recognition and transduction in olfactory receptor neurons, in Handbook of Biosensors and Electronic Noses Medicine, Food and Environment, ed. E. Kress-Rogers (Boca Raton, EL CRC Press, 1997, 521-532). 

FIGURE 6.20.1 As the intensity of the stimnlus increases, so does the frequency of neuronal discharge. Here, the frequency output of an insect antenna is shown for several stimulus levels. (From Buerk, D.G., Biosensors Theory and Applications, Technomic Publishing, Lancaster, PA, 1993. With permission.)... 

Electrochemistry made its first contribution to biolo and medicine with the works of L. Clark in the early 1950 s. He came up with the first electrochemical sensor based on an amperometric method in order to measure out dissolved oxygen in water, especially in biological fluids. It was only after the early 1970 s that on the back of this type of device, other electrochemical biosensors were developed (specifically for detecting glucose, or chemical neurotransmitters). In the case of neurobiology, these developments reflected the need to understand how mechanisms worked for the chemical transmission of neuronal information, a field of study which has been in evidence since the late 1960 s. 

Predefined patterning or network of cells is important for cellular/tissue function and neuronal activities. Cell patterning has a wide range of applications such as tissue engineering, wound healing, biosensors, and cell migration studies. 

One trend in neuron-based biosensors concerns the utilization of whole tissue. Tissue may be even more organo-typic than in vitro grown cell networks. This is particularly important for drug tests... 

Advances in miniaturization and biosensors are expected to facilitate noninvasive monitoring of neuronal signaling and intracellular environment, thus greatly improving the diagnosis and treatment of nervous-system disorders. 

In recent years, polyirnide-modified electrodes are widely used in the field of sensor and biosensor. Among the electroactive species, dopamine (DA) has been of interest to neuroscientists and chemists. A loss of DA containing neurons may result in some serious diseases such as Parkinsonism. Therefore, the determination of the concentration of this neurochemical is important. Dopamine in central nervous system coexists with ascorbic acid, whose oxidation peak potential is close to that of dopamine. Therefore, a significant problem faced in electrochemically determination of dopamine is the presence of electroactive ascorbic acid, which reduces the selectivity and sensitivity [28-30]. 

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