An automated microphysiological assay for toxicity evaluation

Screening a newly developed drug, food additive or cosmetic ingredient for toxicity is a critical preliminary step before it can move forward in the development pipeline. Due to the sometimes dire consequences when a harmful agent is overlooked, toxicologists work under strict guidelines to effectively catalogue and classify new chemical agents. Conventional assays involve long experimental hours and many manual steps that increase the probability of user error; errors that can potentially manifest as inaccurate toxicology results. Automated assays can overcome many potential mistakes that arise due to human error. In the presented work, we created and validated a novel, automated platform for a microphysiological assay that can examine cellular attributes with sensors measuring changes in cellular metabolic rate, oxygen consumption, and vitality mediated by exposure to a potentially toxic agent. The system was validated with low buffer culture medium with varied conductivities that caused changes in the measured impedance on integrated impedance electrodes.