Cell-based Biosensors

A special issue of Biosensors (ISSN 2079-6374).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2019) | Viewed by 30666

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
School of Applied Biology and Biotechnology, Agricultural University of Athens, 11855 Athens, Greece
Interests: cell-based biosensors; cell and neuronal differentiation; real-time monitoring systems; high-throughput screening or diagnostics systems
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Cell-based biosensors represent one of the most advanced and, at the same time, challenging scientific and technological domain in analytical and diagnostic sciences. They are particularly popular in drug development and toxicology research since cells represent the actual targets of the investigated compounds. During the last decade, considerable progress has been made in improving the selectivity and controllability of the response of cells as biorecognition elements against desired target analytes. This achievement has been facilitated by rapid developments in targeted genome editing (including the contribution of Crisp/Cas9-based tools), membrane-engineering and the advent of synthetic cells with designed genetic circuits. On the other hand, an increasing number of biosensing applications employing cells have moved from conventional, two-dimensional cell culture approaches to 3D ones, often combined with microfluidics and nanosensors to present a “multi-organ-on-a-chip” platform. Such advanced systems have the potential to revolutionize drug and toxicity testing in terms of high throughput capacity, speed and reliability, the last merit being inherently associated with the high level of similarity of these platforms with the real body. The Biosensors Special Issue “Cell-Based Biosensors” is intended to be a timely and comprehensive issue on very recent and emerging concepts and technologies in this fascinating field. Topics include, but are not restricted to, (a) novel, cell-based methodological approaches and analytical principles, (b) advances in 3D- and microfluidic cell platforms, including organ-like cultures, cell-printing and encapsulation technologies, (c) novel approaches to synthetic cell manufacturing (targeted genome editing, synthetic genetic circuits, membrane engineering, etc.), (d) cell-based biosensors in functional pharmacology research, (e) novel cell types with improved selective and/or storability, (f) integrated cell-based biosensor platforms, and (g) current challenges, applications and perspectives for cell-based biosensors and analytical devices for toxicology and drug research, including commercially-available systems. Research papers, short communications and reviews are all welcome. If the author is interested in submitting a review, it would be helpful to discuss this with the Guest Editors before your submission.

Prof. Dr. Spyridon E. Kintzios
Assist. Prof. Dr. Georgia Moschopoulou
Dr. Sofia Mavrikou
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Biosensors is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Cell-based assays
  • Cell-based biosensors
  • Drug development
  • Functional assays
  • Targeted genome editing
  • Organ-on-a-Chip
  • Pharmacology research
  • Synthetic cells
  • Three-dimensional (3D) cell culture
  • 3D cell printing
  • Toxicology research

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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9 pages, 421 KiB  
Article
Immobilized Luminescent Bacteria for the Detection of Mycotoxins under Discrete and Flow-Through Conditions
by Olga Senko, Nikolay Stepanov, Olga Maslova, Rashid Akhundov, Anvar Ismailov and Elena Efremenko
Biosensors 2019, 9(2), 63; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios9020063 - 20 May 2019
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 5674
Abstract
A biosensitive element in the form of bacterial Photobacterium phosphoreum cells immobilized in poly(vinyl alcohol) cryogel was tested for the determination of different mycotoxins under discrete and flow-through analysis conditions. The immobilized bioluminescent cells made it possible to quantify the presence of Ochratoxin [...] Read more.
A biosensitive element in the form of bacterial Photobacterium phosphoreum cells immobilized in poly(vinyl alcohol) cryogel was tested for the determination of different mycotoxins under discrete and flow-through analysis conditions. The immobilized bioluminescent cells made it possible to quantify the presence of Ochratoxin A, Sterigmatocystin, Zearalenone, and Deoxynivalenon in aqueous media in a wide range of their concentrations (0.017–56 mg/L, 0.010–33 mg/L, 0.009–14 mg/L, and 0.026–177 mg/L, respectively) via measuring the quenching of cell luminescence. The flow conditions allowed the analysis sensitivity to be improved by an order of magnitude in terms of detected concentrations. Using the immobilized luminescent bacterial cells, we have shown the possibility of evaluating the efficiency of the mycotoxins’ hydrolysis under the action of enzymes. In this way, a 94 ± 4.5% efficiency of Zearalenone hydrolysis with hexahistidine-containing organophosphorus hydrolase for 1h-long treatment of the mycotoxin solution (100 mg/L) was shown. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cell-based Biosensors)
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10 pages, 990 KiB  
Communication
Rapid Nanofabrication of Nanostructured Interdigitated Electrodes (nIDEs) for Long-Term In Vitro Analysis of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Differentiated Cardiomyocytes
by Cacie Hart, Avra Kundu, Kowsik Kumar, Sreekanth J. Varma, Jayan Thomas and Swaminathan Rajaraman
Biosensors 2018, 8(4), 88; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios8040088 - 11 Oct 2018
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 4743
Abstract
Adverse cardiac events are a major cause of late-stage drug development withdrawals. Improved in vitro systems for predicting cardiotoxicity are of great interest to prevent these events and to reduce the expenses involved in the introduction of cardiac drugs into the marketplace. Interdigitated [...] Read more.
Adverse cardiac events are a major cause of late-stage drug development withdrawals. Improved in vitro systems for predicting cardiotoxicity are of great interest to prevent these events and to reduce the expenses involved in the introduction of cardiac drugs into the marketplace. Interdigitated electrodes (IDEs) affixed with a culture well provide a simple, suitable solution for in vitro analysis of cells because of their high sensitivity, ease of fabrication, and label-free, nondestructive analysis. Culturing human pluripotent stem cell differentiated cardiomyocytes onto these IDEs allows for the use of the IDE–cell combination in predictive toxicity assays. IDEs with smaller interdigitated distances allow for greater sensitivity, but typically require cleanroom fabrication. In this communication, we report the definition of a simple IDE geometry on a printed nanostructured substrate, demonstrate a Cellular Index (CI) increase from 0 to 7.7 for human cardiomyocytes, and a decrease in CI from 2.3 to 1 with increased concentration of the model drug, norepinephrine. The nanostructuring results in an increased sensitivity of our 1 mm pitch IDEs when compared to traditionally fabricated IDEs with a pitch of 10 μm (100 times larger electrode gap). The entire nanostructured IDE (nIDE) is fabricated and assembled in a rapid nanofabrication environment, thus allowing for iterative design changes and robust fabrication of devices. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cell-based Biosensors)
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Review

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27 pages, 11611 KiB  
Review
Synergistic Integration of Laboratory and Numerical Approaches in Studies of the Biomechanics of Diseased Red Blood Cells
by He Li, Dimitrios P. Papageorgiou, Hung-Yu Chang, Lu Lu, Jun Yang and Yixiang Deng
Biosensors 2018, 8(3), 76; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios8030076 - 10 Aug 2018
Cited by 16 | Viewed by 5794
Abstract
In red blood cell (RBC) disorders, such as sickle cell disease, hereditary spherocytosis, and diabetes, alterations to the size and shape of RBCs due to either mutations of RBC proteins or changes to the extracellular environment, lead to compromised cell deformability, impaired cell [...] Read more.
In red blood cell (RBC) disorders, such as sickle cell disease, hereditary spherocytosis, and diabetes, alterations to the size and shape of RBCs due to either mutations of RBC proteins or changes to the extracellular environment, lead to compromised cell deformability, impaired cell stability, and increased propensity to aggregate. Numerous laboratory approaches have been implemented to elucidate the pathogenesis of RBC disorders. Concurrently, computational RBC models have been developed to simulate the dynamics of RBCs under physiological and pathological conditions. In this work, we review recent laboratory and computational studies of disordered RBCs. Distinguished from previous reviews, we emphasize how experimental techniques and computational modeling can be synergically integrated to improve the understanding of the pathophysiology of hematological disorders. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cell-based Biosensors)
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24 pages, 8735 KiB  
Review
Transistors for Chemical Monitoring of Living Cells
by Benoît Piro, Giorgio Mattana and Steeve Reisberg
Biosensors 2018, 8(3), 65; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios8030065 - 04 Jul 2018
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 8295
Abstract
We review here the chemical sensors for pH, glucose, lactate, and neurotransmitters, such as acetylcholine or glutamate, made of organic thin-film transistors (OTFTs), including organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs) and electrolyte-gated OFETs (EGOFETs), for the monitoring of cell activity. First, the various chemicals that [...] Read more.
We review here the chemical sensors for pH, glucose, lactate, and neurotransmitters, such as acetylcholine or glutamate, made of organic thin-film transistors (OTFTs), including organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs) and electrolyte-gated OFETs (EGOFETs), for the monitoring of cell activity. First, the various chemicals that are produced by living cells and are susceptible to be sensed in-situ in a cell culture medium are reviewed. Then, we discuss the various materials used to make the substrate onto which cells can be grown, as well as the materials used for making the transistors. The main part of this review discusses the up-to-date transistor architectures that have been described for cell monitoring to date. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cell-based Biosensors)
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Other

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10 pages, 1889 KiB  
Brief Report
A Bioelectronic System to Measure the Glycolytic Metabolism of Activated CD4+ T Cells
by Suzanne M. Crowe, Spyridon Kintzios, Grigoris Kaltsas and Clovis S. Palmer
Biosensors 2019, 9(1), 10; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios9010010 - 09 Jan 2019
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 5452
Abstract
The evaluation of glucose metabolic activity in immune cells is becoming an increasingly standard task in immunological research. In this study, we described a sensitive, inexpensive, and non-radioactive assay for the direct and rapid measurement of the metabolic activity of CD4+ T cells [...] Read more.
The evaluation of glucose metabolic activity in immune cells is becoming an increasingly standard task in immunological research. In this study, we described a sensitive, inexpensive, and non-radioactive assay for the direct and rapid measurement of the metabolic activity of CD4+ T cells in culture. A portable, custom-built Cell Culture Metabolite Biosensor device was designed to measure the levels of acidification (a proxy for glycolysis) in cell-free CD4+ T cell culture media. In this assay, ex vivo activated CD4+ T cells were incubated in culture medium and mini electrodes were placed inside the cell free culture filtrates in 96-well plates. Using this technique, the inhibitors of glycolysis were shown to suppress acidification of the cell culture media, a response similar to that observed using a gold standard lactate assay kit. Our findings show that this innovative biosensor technology has potential for applications in metabolic research, where acquisition of sufficient cellular material for ex vivo analyses presents a substantial challenge. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cell-based Biosensors)
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