Potential colorimetric detection of cancer cells using Phenol Red

Abstract

The objective of this research is to examine the relationship between the color changes of phenol red and the growth of cancer cells, i.e., HeLa and DU145 cells, over a specific period of time. Normal mouse skin fibroblasts (L929 cells) were used as a reference. In this research, the color changes of phenol red due to the acidification of the cell culture medium from the growth of the cells over a period of nine hours showed potential colorimetric characteristics of cancer cells. The color changes of phenol red were observed using visible absorbance spectroscopy. The transformation of the absorbance spectra into coefficients of determination against the examined range of wavelengths created a distinctive spectral signature that signifies phenol red discoloration in cancer and normal cell culture lines.

Keywords: DU145; HeLa; L929; Phenol Red; Visible absorbance spectroscopy; colorimetric detection; pH.