title: Lab-on-a-bird: biophysical monitoring of flying birds.
abstract: The metabolism of birds is finely tuned to their activities and environments, and thus research on avian systems can play an important role in understanding organismal responses to environmental changes. At present, however, the physiological monitoring of bird metabolism is limited by the inability to take real-time measurements of key metabolites during flight. In this study, we present an implantable biosensor system that can be used for continuous monitoring of uric acid levels of birds during various activities including flight. The system consists of a needle-type enzymatic biosensor for the amperometric detection of uric acid in interstitial fluids. A lightweight two-electrode potentiostat system drives the biosensor, reads the corresponding output current and wirelessly transfers the data or records to flash memory. We show how the device can be used to monitor, in real time, the effects of short-term flight and rest cycles on the uric acid levels of pigeons. In addition, we demonstrate that our device has the ability to measure uric acid level increase in homing pigeons while they fly freely. Successful application of the sensor in migratory birds could open up a new way of studying birds in flight which would lead to a better understanding of the ecology and biology of avian movements.
authors.affiliation: School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States of America.
authors.forename: Abdurrahman
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gumus
authors.affiliation: Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States of America.
authors.forename: Seoho
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Applied and Engineering Physics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States of America.
authors.forename: Syed S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Ahsan
authors.affiliation: School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States of America.
authors.forename: Kolbeinn
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Karlsson
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States of America.
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Gabrielson
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Advanced Facility for Avian Research, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Christopher G
authors.initials: CG
authors.lastname: Guglielmo
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States of America.
authors.forename: David W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Winkler
authors.affiliation: Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States of America.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Erickson
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015374:Biosensing Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods*; D010856:Columbidae / Q000502:physiology*; D004867:Equipment Design; D005426:Flight, Animal; D014527:Uric Acid / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D014527:Uric Acid