Ion-Sensitive Field-Effect Transistors With Micropillared Gates for Measuring Cell Ion Exchange at Molecular Levels

The detection of small concentrations of cancer cells before cancer takes over the primary organ completely, or metastasizes to other areas of the body is important for early screening of cancer. One approach to address cancer early screening is through cell ion exchange bioelectricity, which characterizes voltage potential in non-neuronal cells to regulate shape changing, proliferation, differentiation, migration, and cancer formation. Herein, novel ion-sensitive field-effective transistor (ISFET) modality is shown to measure cell behavior during the change of cell properties at molecular levels. ISFETs produce low resistance signals and consume low power. The small size of ISFETs enables miniature diagnosis devices that can be affordably fabricated in a massive array format. A large number of cells can be measured in parallel. Therefore, ISFET allows the combination of low sample requirements and prompt response. ISFETs have the ability to measure the effect of ions from complex biological samples and can be used as affordable point of care devices.