title: Validation of the organic electrochemical transistor for in vitro toxicology.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The gastrointestinal epithelium provides a physical and biochemical barrier to the passage of ions and small molecules; however this barrier may be breached by pathogens and toxins. The effect of individual pathogens/toxins on the intestinal epithelium has been well characterized: they disrupt barrier tissue in a variety of ways, such as by targeting tight junction proteins, or other elements of the junctions between adjacent cells. A variety of methods have been used to characterize disruption in barrier tissue, such as immunofluorescence, permeability assays and electrical measurements of epithelia resistance, but these methods remain time consuming, costly and ill-suited to diagnostics or high throughput toxicology.
  
  
  METHODS
  The advent of organic electronics has created a unique opportunity to interface the worlds of electronics and biology, using devices such as the organic electrochemical transistor (OECT), whose low cost materials and potential for easy fabrication in high throughput formats represent a novel solution for assessing epithelial tissue integrity.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In this study, OECTs were integrated with gastro-intestinal cell monolayers to study the integrity of the gastrointestinal epithelium, providing a very sensitive way to detect minute changes in ion flow across the cell layer due to inherent amplification by the transistor.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We validate the OECT against traditional methods by monitoring the effect of toxic compounds on epithelial tissue. We show a systematic characterization of this novel method, alongside existing methods used to assess barrier tissue function.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The toxic compounds induce a dramatic disruption of barrier tissue, and the OECT measures this disruption with increased temporal resolution and greater or equal sensitivity when compared with existing methods. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled Organic Bioelectronics - Novel Applications in Biomedicine.
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioelectronics, Ecole Nationale Superieure des Mines, CMP-EMSE, MOC, 880 Rue de Mimet, Gardanne 13541, France.
authors.forename: Scherrine A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Tria
authors.forename: Leslie H
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Jimison
authors.forename: Adel
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hama
authors.forename: Manuelle
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bongo
authors.forename: Róisín M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Owens
mesh_terms: D018938:Caco-2 Cells; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D004582:Electronics, Medical / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D041981:Gastrointestinal Tract / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007413:Intestinal Mucosa / Q000378:metabolism*; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D019108:Tight Junctions / Q000378:metabolism; D014116:Toxicology / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D014173:Transistors, Electronic
chemical_list: D008565:Membrane Proteins