Rapid detection of oral cancer: Electrophysiological characterization by dielectrophoresis technology

Microengineered medical devices offer many potential benefits for point-of-care healthcare and rapid diagnosis, particularly in the field of rapid cancer detection. We have developed a microengineered system using the electrostatic phenomenon dielectrophoresis (DEP) to non-invasively determine the electrophysiological parameters of normal and cancerous oral brush biopsies, looking at both samples consisting primarily of keratinocytes and those consisting primarily of fibroblasts. The cells were isolated from patients after informed consent and the normal, dysplastic/ cancerous state of oral biopsies were confirmed histopathologycally. Cytoplasmic conductivity and specific membrane capacitance were determined using DEP. Cancerous brush biopsies exhibited significantly different electrophysiological fingerprints to normal oral mucosa. KCND2, a gene encoding a member of voltage-activated potassium ion channels was found to be differentially expressed between CAFs and NOFs.