Study of a cell-based electrochemical biosensor for fungicide cytotoxicity evaluation on mammalian cell lines

Abstract

The ultimate concern over pesticides in the environment is their toxic impact on nontarget organisms, including humans. For over the last two decades, the toxicological research has focused on pesticide-induced oxidative stress in terms of monitoring alterations in various biochemical and molecular compositions. A relative new group of agricultural fungicides, strobilurins, represent a major class of plant protection products and world's largest selling fungicides. They act as complex III Qo site inhibitors and thus disrupt electron transport in the respiratory chain, which generates superoxide and potentially results in oxidative stress. Cell-based biosensors arise as powerful tools for the rapid detection of xenobiotics in food industries, agriculture and the environment. The present study was aimed at developing an electrochemical biosensor for cytotoxicity assays on mammalian cells, cultured on PEDOT electrodes. The cellular mono layers formed on top of the conductive material, support cell interactions, growth and metabolism as cells keep their original characteristics of morphology and functionality. In this framework, the action of kresoxim-methyl, of the stobilurins group, was examined on murine neuroblastoma cells (N2a). Square wave voltammetry (SWV) and a three-electrode configuration (W: PEDOT, C: Carbon, R: Silver) were used for recording the electrochemical changes after drug treatment. Moreover, standard viability/cytotoxicity protocols were conducted as references for assay comparisons. Due to PEDOTs transparent composition morphological observations and adhesion tests of the seeded cells were also made. Electrochemical responses against the fungicide provided evidence of the possible use of this assembly as a toxicity biosensor.