SPECTROSCOPY, IMAGING, OTHER TECHNIQUES |
Nanoscale Dielectrophoretic Spectroscopy of Individual Immobilized Mammalian Blood Cells
Brian P. Lynch 1, Al M. Hilton 1 and Garth J. Simpson 1*
1 Department of Chemistry, Purdue University
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: gsimpson{at}purdue.edu.
Submitted on February 6, 2006
Revised on April 5, 2006
Accepted on 23 May 2006
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Abstract |
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Dielectrophoretic force microscopy (DEPFM) and spectroscopy have been performed on individual intact surface-immobilized mammalian red blood cells. Dielectrophoretic force spectra were obtained in situ in ~125 ms and could be acquired over a region comparable in dimension to the effective diameter of a scanning probe microscopy tip. Good agreement was observed between the measured dielectrophoretic spectra and predictions using a single-shell cell model. In addition to allowing for highly localized dielectric characterization, DEPFM provided a simple means for noncontact imaging of mammalian blood cells under aqueous conditions. These studies demonstrate the feasibility of using DEPFM to monitor localized changes in membrane capacitance in real-time with high spatial resolution on immobilized cells, complementing previous studies of mobile whole cells and cell suspensions.
Key Words:
atomic force microscopy, dielectrophoresis, electrokinetics, erythrocyte, membrane capacitance
