Comparison of electrical conductivities of various brain phantom gels: Developing a 'brain gel model'

The use of conducting gels to mimic brain and other tissues is of increasing interest in the development of new medical devices. Currently, there are few such models that can be utilized at physiologic temperatures. In this work, the conductivities of agar, agarose and gelatin gels were manipulated by varying NaCl concentration from 0-1 mg/ml. The AC conductivity was measured at room and physiological temperatures (37 degrees C) in the 100-500 Hz frequency range. Conductivity (sigma) was nearly independent of frequency but increased linearly with NaCl concentration and was higher at physiological temperatures in these gels. A formula for predicting conductivity as a function of NaCl concentration was derived for each gel type. The overall goal is to develop a 'brain gel model', for studying low frequency electrical properties of the brain and other tissues at physiological temperatures. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.