Development of an on-chip model for cardiac arrhythmia and pacing
(2013) EEM820 20131Department of Biomedical Engineering
- Abstract
- Cardiovascular diseases are accountable for almost 50 % of the mortality number in Europe which is why research on its causes is highly prioritised. For practical and ethical reasons, in vitro study models are of high importance to enable research on cardiac abnormal behaviours.
To meet this issue, researchers from Imec, Belgium, developed Neuray-II, the second generation of a biocompatible chip with micrometer sized electrodes as a platform for in vitro studies of cardiac arrhythmia and pacing. For this study, an HL-1 cell line was used and their action potential waves were visualised with fluorescent imaging. Low and high frequency protocols were applied to perform electrical stimulation with the chip-electrodes to induce pacing and... (More) - Cardiovascular diseases are accountable for almost 50 % of the mortality number in Europe which is why research on its causes is highly prioritised. For practical and ethical reasons, in vitro study models are of high importance to enable research on cardiac abnormal behaviours.
To meet this issue, researchers from Imec, Belgium, developed Neuray-II, the second generation of a biocompatible chip with micrometer sized electrodes as a platform for in vitro studies of cardiac arrhythmia and pacing. For this study, an HL-1 cell line was used and their action potential waves were visualised with fluorescent imaging. Low and high frequency protocols were applied to perform electrical stimulation with the chip-electrodes to induce pacing and blocking, respectively, of the action potentials. Macroscopic image analysis of time-lapses capturing the stimulation, with a custom developed Matlab-script, did not show any large scale change in action potential propagation, induction, or termination of re-entrant spirals. The local effect of stimulation on a cellular level was analysed with another script developed for this purpose. The single-cell analysis showed that cells were stimulated only in the near vicinity of the selected electrode. The results from the frequency analysis of the cellular signals did not prove that pacing could be performed. In the future, the analysis method needs higher accuracy to provide a valid conclusion. Analysis of the cellular signals from high frequency protocols indicate that local blocking of action might be possible but also needs further experiments for confirmation. Attempts were also made to alter the propagation of action potential waves by structural patterning. This was done by microcontact printing and application of a silicone insert, both with a non successful outcome.
In conclusion the Neuray-II could possibly be used as an in vitro model for studies of cardiac arrhythmia and pacing since the basic tools and knowledge have been provided with this project. Further development is needed for completion of a functional model. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/4057344
- author
- Leht, Emelie LU
- supervisor
- organization
- course
- EEM820 20131
- year
- 2013
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- language
- English
- additional info
- 2013-07
- id
- 4057344
- date added to LUP
- 2013-09-20 09:42:50
- date last changed
- 2014-10-08 14:47:27
@misc{4057344,
abstract = {{Cardiovascular diseases are accountable for almost 50 % of the mortality number in Europe which is why research on its causes is highly prioritised. For practical and ethical reasons, in vitro study models are of high importance to enable research on cardiac abnormal behaviours.
To meet this issue, researchers from Imec, Belgium, developed Neuray-II, the second generation of a biocompatible chip with micrometer sized electrodes as a platform for in vitro studies of cardiac arrhythmia and pacing. For this study, an HL-1 cell line was used and their action potential waves were visualised with fluorescent imaging. Low and high frequency protocols were applied to perform electrical stimulation with the chip-electrodes to induce pacing and blocking, respectively, of the action potentials. Macroscopic image analysis of time-lapses capturing the stimulation, with a custom developed Matlab-script, did not show any large scale change in action potential propagation, induction, or termination of re-entrant spirals. The local effect of stimulation on a cellular level was analysed with another script developed for this purpose. The single-cell analysis showed that cells were stimulated only in the near vicinity of the selected electrode. The results from the frequency analysis of the cellular signals did not prove that pacing could be performed. In the future, the analysis method needs higher accuracy to provide a valid conclusion. Analysis of the cellular signals from high frequency protocols indicate that local blocking of action might be possible but also needs further experiments for confirmation. Attempts were also made to alter the propagation of action potential waves by structural patterning. This was done by microcontact printing and application of a silicone insert, both with a non successful outcome.
In conclusion the Neuray-II could possibly be used as an in vitro model for studies of cardiac arrhythmia and pacing since the basic tools and knowledge have been provided with this project. Further development is needed for completion of a functional model.}},
author = {{Leht, Emelie}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{Development of an on-chip model for cardiac arrhythmia and pacing}},
year = {{2013}},
}