Cell-based biosensors based on light-addressable potentiometric sensors for single cell monitoring

Cell-based biosensors incorporate cells as sensing elements that convert changes in immediate environment to signals for processing. This paper reports an investigation on light-addressable potentiometric sensor (LAPS) to be used as a possible cell-base biosensor that will enable us to monitor extracellular action potential of single living cell under stimulant. In order to modify chip surface and immobilize cells, we coat a layer of poly-l-ornithine and laminin on surface of LAPS chip on which rat cortical cells are grown well. When 10 μg/ml acetylcholine solution is administrated, the light pointer is focused on a single neuronal cell and the extracellular action potential of the targeted cell is recorded with cell-based biosensor based on LAPS. The results demonstrate that this kind of biosensor has potential to monitor electrophysiology of living cell non-invasive for a long term, and to evaluate drugs primarily.