I-Corps: Multielectrode Array Biosensor

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The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project ultimately will allow researchers to better understand the brain and improve the productivity of neurological studies. The societal impact of this invention will help researchers, scientists, and physicians alike make precise neurochemical measurements in the brain to better understand complex behaviors, diseases, and drug states. Carbon multielectrode arrays technology will enable measurements in the brain to better understand brain heterogeneity and neurological diseases that burden our society such as addiction/drug abuse, epilepsy, depression and anxiety. These multielectrode arrays will perform complex measurements of neurotransmitters in multiple brain regions simultaneously. The commercial potential for this novel technology is substantial in that, currently, there is no existing device that can simultaneously measure neurotransmission in multiple brain regions. These benefits should be of value to investigators, clinicians, and researchers in government, academic, and research institutions as well as industry.This I-Corps project will use carbon coated metal wires and carbon fibers as electrode materials to design, develop, and engineer multielectrode arrays. These multielectrode arrays will be used as electrode materials to detect neurotransmitters such as dopamine, serotonin, norepinephrine, and others in multiple brain regions simultaneously. This technology is cutting edge as no other neurological device has been developed with carbon fiber multielectrode arrays to be utilized as biosensors. This research will utilize fast scan cyclic voltammetry (FSCV) to detect neurotransmitters in preclinical models. A changing voltage will be applied to the electrode material to measure neurochemical changes in vivo in animal models. The technical results on which the project is based arise from laboratory experiments that have further developed these multielectrode arrays. The carbon fiber multielectrode arrays have been immersed in prepared neurotransmitter stock solutions in the laboratory and have successfully measured dopamine and other neurotransmitters using FSCV and data analysis software.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.