Label-free, real-time on-chip sensing of living cells via grating-coupled surface plasmon resonance

Giulia Borile; Stefano Rossi; Andrea Filippi; Enrico Gazzola; Pietro Capaldo; Claudia Tregnago; Martina Pigazzi; Filippo Romanato

doi:10.1016/j.bpc.2019.106262

Label-free, real-time on-chip sensing of living cells via grating-coupled surface plasmon resonance

Biophys Chem. 2019 Nov:254:106262. doi: 10.1016/j.bpc.2019.106262. Epub 2019 Sep 3.

Authors

Giulia Borile¹, Stefano Rossi², Andrea Filippi³, Enrico Gazzola⁴, Pietro Capaldo⁵, Claudia Tregnago⁶, Martina Pigazzi⁷, Filippo Romanato⁸

Affiliations

¹ Fondazione Institute of Pediatric Research Città della Speranza, Corso Stati Uniti 4, 35127 Padua, Italy; Department of Physics and Astronomy "G. Galilei", University of Padua, Via Marzolo 8, 35131 Padua, Italy. Electronic address: giulia.borile@unipd.it.
² Fondazione Institute of Pediatric Research Città della Speranza, Corso Stati Uniti 4, 35127 Padua, Italy; Department of Physics and Astronomy "G. Galilei", University of Padua, Via Marzolo 8, 35131 Padua, Italy.
³ Fondazione Institute of Pediatric Research Città della Speranza, Corso Stati Uniti 4, 35127 Padua, Italy; Department of Physics and Astronomy "G. Galilei", University of Padua, Via Marzolo 8, 35131 Padua, Italy; Fondazione Bruno Kessler, Via Sommarive 18, 38123 Trento, Italy.
⁴ Department of Physics and Astronomy "G. Galilei", University of Padua, Via Marzolo 8, 35131 Padua, Italy.
⁵ Department of Physics and Astronomy "G. Galilei", University of Padua, Via Marzolo 8, 35131 Padua, Italy; CNR-INFM TASC IOM National Laboratory, Area Science Park S.S, 14 km 163.5, 34012 Trieste, Italy.
⁶ Women and Child Health Department, Haematology-Oncology Clinic and Lab, University of Padua, Via Giustiniani 3, 35128 Padua, Italy.
⁷ Fondazione Institute of Pediatric Research Città della Speranza, Corso Stati Uniti 4, 35127 Padua, Italy; Women and Child Health Department, Haematology-Oncology Clinic and Lab, University of Padua, Via Giustiniani 3, 35128 Padua, Italy.
⁸ Fondazione Institute of Pediatric Research Città della Speranza, Corso Stati Uniti 4, 35127 Padua, Italy; Department of Physics and Astronomy "G. Galilei", University of Padua, Via Marzolo 8, 35131 Padua, Italy; CNR-INFM TASC IOM National Laboratory, Area Science Park S.S, 14 km 163.5, 34012 Trieste, Italy; Laboratory for Nanofabrication of Nanodevices, Corso Stati Uniti 4, 35127 Padua, Italy.

PMID: 31514114
DOI: 10.1016/j.bpc.2019.106262

Abstract

The application of nanotechnologies to address biomedical questions is a key strategy for innovation in biomedical research. Among others, a key point consists in the availability of nanotechnologies for monitoring cellular processes in a real-time and label-free approach. Here, we focused on a grating-coupled Surface Plasmon Resonance (GC-SPR) sensor exploiting phase interrogation. This sensor can be integrated in a microfluidic chamber that ensures cell viability and avoids cell stress. We report the calibration of the sensor response as a function of cell number and its application to monitor cell adhesion kinetics as well as cell response to an external stimulus. Our results show that GC-SPR sensors can offer a valuable alternative to prism-coupled or imaging SPR devices, amenable for microfluidic implementation.

Keywords: Grating; Live cells; Nanostructure; Surface plasmon resonance.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Cell Adhesion
Cell Line, Tumor
Cell Survival
Humans
Lab-On-A-Chip Devices*
Microscopy, Fluorescence, Multiphoton
Nanostructures / chemistry
Surface Plasmon Resonance / methods*