A miniaturized push–pull-perfusion probe for few-second sampling of neurotransmitters in the mouse brain?

Lab on a Chip Pub Date: 2019-03-05 DOI: 10.1039/C8LC01137K

Abstract

Measuring biomolecule concentrations in the brain of living animals, in real time, is a challenging task, especially when detailed information at high temporal resolution is also required. Traditionally, microdialysis probes are used that generally have sampling areas in the order of about 1 mm2, and provide information on concentrations with a temporal resolution of at least several minutes. In this paper, we present a novel miniaturized push–pull perfusion sampling probe that uses an array of small 3 μm-wide sampling channels to sample neurotransmitters at a typical recovery rate of 61%, with a reduced risk of clogging. The added feature to segment the dialysate inside the probe into small water-in-decane droplets enables the detection of concentrations with a temporal resolution of a few seconds. Here we used the probe for in vivo recordings of neurotransmitter glutamate released upon electrical stimulation in the brain of a mouse to demonstrate the feasibility of the probe for real-time neurochemical brain analysis.

Graphical abstract: A miniaturized push–pull-perfusion probe for few-second sampling of neurotransmitters in the mouse brain
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