It is important to
clarify the transport of biomolecules and chemicals
to tissues. Herein, we present an electrochemical imaging method for
evaluating the endothelial permeability. In this method, the diffusion
of electrochemical tracers, [Fe(CN)
6
]
4–
, through a monolayer of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs)
was monitored using a large-scale integration-based device containing
400 electrodes. In conventional tracer-based assays, tracers that
diffuse through an HUVEC monolayer into another channel are detected.
In contrast, the present method does not employ separated channels.
In detail, a HUVEC monolayer is immersed in a solution containing
[Fe(CN)
6
]
4–
on the device. As [Fe(CN)
6
]
4–
is oxidized and consumed at the packed
electrodes, [Fe(CN)
6
]
4–
begins to diffuse
through the monolayer from the bulk solution to the electrodes and
the obtained currents depend on the endothelial permeability. As a
proof-of-concept, the effects of histamine on the monolayer were monitored.
Also, an HUVEC monolayer was cocultured with cancer spheroids, and
the endothelial permeability was monitored to evaluate the metastasis
of the cancer spheroids. Unlike conventional methods, the device can
provide spatial information, allowing the interaction between the
monolayer and the spheroids to be monitored. The developed method
is a promising tool for organs-on-a-chip and drug screening in vitro.