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In the present study, we investigate the sensitivity and applicability of the time-domain electrical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) techniques, namely Fourier-EIS and adaptive filtering based EIS (AF-EIS), for studying cells' populations and single living cells in natural physiological environment in vitro. Using ultra-violet radiation for decreasing cell life-span we demonstrate the possibility to distinguish the living cells' population from the dead cells by both Fourier-EIS and AF-EIS. However, determining the viability of the single cell requires significant sensitivity, which is inaccessible with the conventional Fourier-EIS contrary to AF-EIS. The latter result stems from the high noise immunity of the AF-EIS, which also makes it possible to provide the measurements using the safe for cells 15-mV excitation voltage and 10–100 nA current response. The developed single-cell AF-EIS approach opens a direct roadmap for creating accurate, robust, and easy to implement toxin and radiation hazard sensors with the living cell as an acting element and proposes a solution for actual ecological and healthcare problems.

AbstractHere we demonstrate a simple label-free bio-electronic radiation (ultra-violet) hazard detector based on non-destructive electrical impedance spectroscopy technique with a single living cell as a sensing element. Radiation results in wrong cell’s functioning and, as corollary, cell’s membrane distortion. The latter results in impedance shift for the electrode covered by the cell. The additional sensitivity of impedance shift is achieved by the simultaneous usage of the TiN porous electrodes and adaptive filtering for impedance data processing. The main advantage of the proposed sensor with respect to purely physical and/or chemical sensors is high selectivity: it a priory reacts only on the dangerous for living beings radiation.