Development of a Low Voltage Electroporator for Electrochemotherapy to Enhance Patient Treatment

Abstract

Electroporation is the process of temporarily creating openings in the cell membrane by exposing it to a shortterm electric field. In addition to creating openings in the membrane, electroporation can also alter the cell's cytoskeletal organization and consequently modify its morphological features. Electroporation is also known as Electropermeabilization or Pulse Electric Field (PEF). This technique is widely used in research, commercial and biomedical applications. With this broad utility, it was observed that patients undergoing Chemotherapy treatments through Electroporation experienced an uncomfortable sensation due to the high voltage of the device, which is generally 1000 V/cm or more, lasting for 100 µs at a repetition rate of 1 Hz Also, the Conventional Electroporators are very expensive as well not portable. To address this challenge, we designed and implemented an economical low-voltage electroporator that could operate within the DC voltage range of 0V to 500V and pulse duration of 0μs to 10ms for cell membrane permeabilization without damaging the cells. Furthermore, the power supply unit of the electroporator acted as a power source for the DC pulse magnitude generator section and pulse length generator section. An optocoupler was incorporated into the system to act as a switching device, to isolate the low-voltage microcontroller and the high-voltage MOSFET. The Microcontroller operated as a pulse width generator and was coded to generate the required number and duration of pulses to control the electric field across the cuvette. A potentiometer and keypad were employed to alter the pulse amplitude from 0 V to 500 V and pulse width from 0 μs to 10 ms respectively. The Electroporator system was equipped with a broad spectrum of pulse amplitudes and pulse durations, allowing it to effectively electroporate the epithelial cells. Additionally, the proximity between the simulated and constructed circuit results showed that the developed electroporator's parameters are capable, reliable, and efficient for the electroporation process. The Electroporator was affixed to a cuvette containing the cell suspension for electropermeabilization. Ultimately, the electroporator was validated by successfully permeabilized epithelial cells at 650 V/cm and above in electric fields.