It has long been recognized that cationic nanoparticles induce cell membrane permeability. Recently, it has been found that cationic nanoparticles induce the formation and/or growth of nanoscale holes in supported lipid bilayers. In this paper we show that non-cytotoxic concentrations of cationic nanoparticles induce 30-2000 pA currents in 293A and KB cells, consistent with a nanoscale defect such as a single hole or group of holes in the cell membrane ranging from 1 to 350 nm 2 in total area. Other forms of nanoscale defects, including the nanoparticle porating agents adsorbing onto or intercalating into the lipid bilayer are also consistent; although the size of the defect must increase to account for any reduction in ion conduction, as compared to a water channel. An individual defect forming event takes 1 -100 ms, while membrane resealing may occur over tens of seconds. Patchclamp data provide direct evidence for the formation of nanoscale defects in living cell membranes. The cationic polymer data are compared and contrasted with patch-clamp data obtained for AMO-3, a small molecule that is proposed to make well-defined 3.4 nm holes in lipid bilayers. Here, we observe data that are consistent with AMO-3 making ~3 nm holes in living cell membranes.

Apoptosis is defined by a distinct set of morphological changes observed during cell death including loss of focal adhesions, the formation of cell membrane buds or blebs, and a decrease in total cell volume. Recent studies suggest that these dramatic morphological changes, particularly apoptotic volume decrease (AVD), are an early prerequisite to apoptosis and precede key biochemical time-points. Here we use atomic force microscopy to observe early stage AVD of KB cells undergoing staurosporine-induced apoptosis. After a 3-h exposure to 1 microM staurosporine, a 32% decrease in total cell height and a 50% loss of total cell volume is observed accompanied by only a 15% change in cell diameter. The observed AVD precedes key biochemical hallmarks of apoptosis such as loss of mitochondrial membrane potential, phosphatidyl serine translocation, nuclear fragmentation, and measurable caspase-3 activity. This suggests that morphological volume changes occur very early in the induction of apoptosis.

Studies of electrically induced morphological changes in neurons have either been limited by the resolution of light microscopy or the cell fixation required for electron microscopy. Atomic force microscopy (AFM), however, mechanically maps cell topography, offering exquisite resolution of evolving processes in three dimensions. In this paper, we present a microelectrode array (MEA) based platform for the real-time detection of subtle, electrically induced variations in neuronal morphology, with AFM. This platform required the customized design and production of a silicon-based MEA, integration with a commercial AFM, and the development of biological techniques for culture of neuroblastoma (SH-SY5Y) cells onto the device. Biphasic pulse trains (1 Hz) of electric current were delivered to a microelectrode interfaced with a neuroblastoma cell, and the AFM continuously recorded a cross-sectional height profile. Proof-of-principle experiments demonstrate that electric stimulation may induce fluctuations ranging in the 100-300-nm range, 75-fold greater than the systemic resolution, but smaller than the resolution of light microscopy modalities. In addition, the real-time capabilities of AFM captured a collapse (30%-40%) of a neurite cross section, seconds after electric stimulation. Ultimately, this platform can be used to nanocharacterize cell responses to electric stimulation and other biochemical cues, for use in neuronal patterning and regeneration studies.

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