Noninvasive collection of target cells such as circulating tumor cells (CTCs) is crucial for biology and medicine research. Conventional methods of cell collection are often complex, requiring either size-dependent sorting or invasive enzymatic reactions. Here, we show the development of a functional polymer film, which combines the thermoresponsive poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) and the conducting poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiopene)/poly(styrene sulfonate), and its use for the capture and release of CTCs. When coated onto microfabricated gold electrodes, the proposed polymer films are capable of noninvasively capturing and controllably releasing cells while, at the same time, monitoring these processes with conventional electrical measurements.
Keywords: Bioelectronics; Cancer cells; Capture; Conducting polymers; Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy; NIPAAm; PEDOT:PSS; Release.
© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.