Crater-like nanoelectrode arrays for electrochemical detection of dopamine release from neuronal cells.

Stem cell therapy has shown great potential in treating various incurable diseases using conventional chemotherapy. Parkinson's disease (PD)-a neurodegenerative disease-has been reported to be caused by quantitative loss or abnormal function of dopaminergic neurons (DAnergic neurons). To date, stem cell therapies have shown some potential in treating PD through ex vivo engraftment of stem-cell-derived neuronal. However, accurately identifying the differentiation and non-invasively evaluating the functionality and maturity of DAnergic neurons are a formidable challenge in stem cell therapies. These strategies are important in enhancing the efficacy of stem cell therapies. In this study, we report a novel cell cultivation platform, that is, a nanocrater-like electrochemical nanoelectrode array (NCENA) for monitoring dopamine release from living neurons, that can detect exocytotic DA release from living DAnergic neurons. In particular, the developed NCENA has a nanostructure in which three-dimensional porous gold nanopillars are uniformly arranged on conductive electrodes. The developed NCENA exhibited great DA sensing capabilities with a linear range of 0.39-150 μM and a limit of detection of 1.16 μM. Furthermore, the nano topographical cues provided by the NCENA are suitable for cell cultivation with enhanced cellular adhesion. Finally, we successfully detected the DA release from living neurons in a real time and non-destructive manner. The NCENA can be applied to other cell types and are suitable for various applications, including the development of differentiation protocols and practical stem cell therapies.&#xD.