Polystyrene (PS) devices offer many advantages over conventional fluidic substrates when used to investigate biological systems.  PS is an ideal material for microfluidic device fabrication, especially considering the enhanced cell adhesion to PS, its enhanced rigidity/amenability to automation, and its ability to enable a wider range of analytes to be investigated, even analytes with a high degree of hydrophobicity.   In this work, we describe a new, simple, and inexpensive approach to fabricate PS devices that is based upon melting polystyrene (in powder form) around electrode materials.  These PS-based devices were used to electrochemically detect the release of catecholamines from a dopaminergic cell line (PC 12 cells). In depth studies showed increased cell adhesion on PS devices as compared to use of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS).  Cell adhesion could be further improved on PS devices via oxygen plasma treatment. Stimulating the cells with potassium resulted in the release of 114 � 11 �M catecholamines, a significant increase over the release from cells that had been exposed to an inhibitor (reserpine, 20 � 2 �M of catecholamines).  This device was further developed to integrate cell immobilization, on-chip peristaltic pumps and injection valves, microchip electrophoresis, and electrochemical detection. The use of peristaltic pumps and injection valves allows for cells to be located on-chip, but away from high voltages associated with the electrophoretic separation. Microchip electrophoresis with electrochemical detection provided a means of separating and detecting cell releasates and electrochemical detection provided close to real-time analysis. The temporal resolution of the device was improved with the addition of a syringe pump in withdraw mode, with a concentration change being evident in one separation event. Studies towards using this integrated device to monitor the release of dopamine and norepinephrine from PC 12 cells will also be discussed.

Utilization of polystyrene-based devices for measurement of dopamine and norepinephrine

246th National Meeting (2013)

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