Photostimulation of Whole‐Cell Conductance in Primary Rat Neocortical Astrocytes Mediated by Organic Semiconducting Thin Films

Benfenati, Valentina; Martino, Nicola; Antognazza, Maria Rosa; Pistone, Assunta; Toffanin, Stefano; Ferroni, Stefano; Lanzani, Guglielmo; Muccini, Michele

doi:10.1002/adhm.201300179

Cited by 60 publications

(67 citation statements)

References 46 publications

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“…These results confirmed and extended our previous study demonstrating that P13 is a biocompatible and thereby suitable substrate to be interfaced with neural cells . The results are also in line with previous studies showing that other organic materials, namely a mixture of poly(3‐hexylthiophene) with phenyl‐C61‐butyric‐acid‐methyl ester (P3HT:PCBM), support the growth of pure primary cultured rat neocortical astrocytes better than control substrates . Indeed, it is widely recognized that chemical similarity between cell membrane and organic biointerface, as well as mechanical properties such as softness promote favorable interaction between organic materials and neural cells …”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 91%

Electrical Stimulation by an Organic Transistor Architecture Induces Calcium Signaling in Nonexcitable Brain Cells

Borrachero-Conejo

Saracino

Natali

et al. 2018

Adv Healthcare Materials

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materialsdisplay intrinsic multi functionality, combining ionoelectronic transport properties, photonic properties, and optical transparency within the visible range with improved biocompatibility with neural cells compared to inorganic sub strates. [1][2][3][4] Notably, the survival of primary neuronal cells on organic bioelectronic polymers [1,3,4] and small molecules [5,6] is higher when compared to silicon/glass substrates, while the functionality of brain cells is preserved on organic biofunctional interfaces. [1,5] Importantly, organic bioelec tronic [3,7] and biooptoelectronic [8,9] devices capable to record, stimulate, and modulate functionality of neuronal cells in vitro [7] and in vivo [3] have been reported, showing the potential and the relevance for clinical neurology as well as for neuroscience fun damental studies.Recently, the role of glial cells, called astrocytes, is emerging among the chal lenges and targets that need to be con sidered for the development of devices devoted to neuroscience investigations and applications. Astrocytes are, indeed, the cells that are majorly involved in the regulation of the concentration of ions and neu rotransmitters in the synaptic cleft, participating to communica tion signals between neurons and playing a pivotal role in the brain physio logy. [10,11] The function of astrocytes mainly depends on the activity of transmembrane proteins forming transporters, Organic bioelectronics have a huge potential to generate interfaces and devices for the study of brain functions and for the therapy of brain pathologies. In this context, increasing efforts are needed to develop technologies for monitoring and stimulation of nonexcitable brain cells, called astrocytes. Astroglial calcium signaling plays, indeed, a pivotal role in the physiology and pathophysiology of the brain. Here, the use of transparent organic cell stimulating and sensing transistor (O-CST) architecture, fabricated with N,N′-ditridecylperylene-3,4,9,10-tetracarboxylic diimide (P13), to elicit and monitor intracellular calcium concentration ([Ca 2+ ] i ) in primary rat neocortical astrocytes is demonstrated. The transparency of O-CST allows performing calcium imaging experiments, showing that extracellular electrical stimulation of astrocytes induces a drastic increase in [Ca 2+ ] i . Pharmacological studies indicate that transient receptor potential (TRP) superfamily are critical mediators of the [Ca 2+ ] i increase. Experimental and computational analyses show that [Ca 2+ ] i response is enabled by the O-CST device architecture. Noteworthy, the extracellular field application induces a slight but significant increase in the cell volume. Collectively, it is shown that the O-CST is capable of selectively evoking astrocytes [Ca 2+ ] i , paving the way to the development of organic bioelectronic devices as glial interfaces to excite and control physiology of non-neuronal brain cells.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 91%

Electrical Stimulation by an Organic Transistor Architecture Induces Calcium Signaling in Nonexcitable Brain Cells

Borrachero-Conejo

Saracino

Natali

et al. 2018

Adv Healthcare Materials

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“…The presence of a π‐conjugated carbon skeleton, much akin to many biomolecules, makes conjugated organic polymers potentially viable materials for biological applications . They have been already successfully implemented in electrolyte gated transistors, electrodes, ionic devices, sensors, and optical interfaces . In particular, thin films of poly(3‐hexylthiophene) (P3HT) have been employed as optical interfaces to trigger cellular activity upon photoexcitation .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Photophysics of Polythiophene Nanoparticles for Biological Applications

et al. 2018

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In this work the photophysics of poly(3-hexylthiophene) nanoparticles (NPs) is investigated in the context of their biological applications. The NPs, made as colloidal suspensions in aqueous buffers, present a distinct absorption band in the low-energy region. On the basis of systematic analysis of absorption and transient absorption (TA) spectra taken under different pH conditions, this band is associated with charge-transfer states generated by the polarization of loosely bound polymer chains and originating from complexes formed with electron-withdrawing species. Importantly, the ground-state depletion of these states upon photoexcitation is active even on microsecond timescales, thus suggesting that they act as precursor states for long-living polarons; this could be beneficial for cellular stimulation. Preliminary transient absorption microscopy results for NPs internalized within the cells reveal the presence of long-living species, further substantiating their relevance in biointerfaces.

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“…The same bio‐organic interface was also demonstrated to affect the electrical properties of the cell membrane in cultured astrocytes . After a few seconds of illumination, the membrane potential was observed to depolarize.…”

Section: Exogenous Stimulationmentioning

confidence: 90%

Shedding Light on Living Cells

et al. 2014

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An overview of the optical methods available to modulate the cellular activity in cell cultures and biological tissues is presented, with a focus on the use of exogenous functional materials that absorb electromagnetic radiation and transduce it into a secondary stimulus for cell excitation, with high temporal and spatial resolution. Both organic and inorganic materials are critically evaluated, for in vitro and in vivo applications. Finally, as a direct practical application of optical-stimulation techniques, the most recent results in the realization of artificial visual implants are discussed.

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Photostimulation of Whole‐Cell Conductance in Primary Rat Neocortical Astrocytes Mediated by Organic Semiconducting Thin Films

Cited by 60 publications

References 46 publications

Electrical Stimulation by an Organic Transistor Architecture Induces Calcium Signaling in Nonexcitable Brain Cells

Electrical Stimulation by an Organic Transistor Architecture Induces Calcium Signaling in Nonexcitable Brain Cells

The Photophysics of Polythiophene Nanoparticles for Biological Applications

Shedding Light on Living Cells

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