Electric Field-Assisted Positioning of Neurons on Pt Microelectrode Arrays
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Electric Field-Assisted Positioning of Neurons on Pt Microelectrode Arrays Shalini Prasad1 , Mo Yang 2£ , Xuan Zhang2£ , Yingchun Ni3 , Vladimir Parpura3 , Cengiz. S. Ozkan 2 , and Mihrimah Ozkan 1, 4 1
Department of Electrical Engineering Department of Mechanical Engineering 3 Department of Cell Biology and Neuroscience 4 Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering University of California Riverside, CA-92521 £ Both authors equally contributed 2
ABSTRACT Characterization of electrical activity of individual neurons is the fundamental step in understanding the functioning of the nervous system. Single cell electrical activity at various stages of cell development is essential to accurately determine in in-vivo conditions the position of a cell based on the procured electrical activity. Understanding memory formation and development translates to changes in the electrical activity of individual neurons. Hence, there is an enormous need to develop novel ways for isolating and positioning individual neurons over single recording sites. To this end, we used a 3x3 multiple microelectrode array system to spatially arrange neurons by applying a gradient AC field. We characterized the electric field distribution inside our test platform by using two dimensiona l finite element modeling (FEM) and determined the location of neurons over the electrode array. Dielectrophoretic AC fields were utilized to separate the neurons from the glial cells and to position the neurons over the electrodes. The neurons were obtained from 0-2-day-old rat (Sprague-Dawley) pups. The technique of using electric fields to achieve single neuron patterning has implications in neural engineering, elucidating a new and simpler method to develop and study neuronal activity as compared to conventional microelectrode array techniques.
INTRODUCTION Neurons are the basic elements in information processing in the central nervous system. The information transfer between neurons is achieved through the generation of transmembrane ionic currents which are then converted into electrical potentials that can be recorded in a non- invasive extracellular fashion. With the commercialization and development of integrated-circuit fabrication technologies, including micromachining and metal deposition, it has become feasible to produce multi-electrode devices on planar substrates for the purpose of studying neuron cultures in vitro (Gross et al., 1977 and Gross, 1979). To determine the cell viability and development as well as measure the associated electrical activity, it is essential to achieve simultaneous electrical as well as optical monitoring of the neurons in culture (Gross and Lucas, 1982). The two major problems associated with multi-electrode devices are the separation of neurons from glial cells that insulate the electrical activity of the neurons and the establishment of individual electrode-cell adhesion. In addition, the electrical potential recorded through the
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