Abstract: Recent technological advances in microfabrication techniques and the development of new biological model systems have enabled the realization of microphysiological systems capable of recapitulating aspects of human physiology in vitro with great fidelity. Using microfluidic, microtechnological and microsensor structures and representative in vitro models of human organs, robust microphysiological systems can be developed that accommodate high-resolution microscopy and integrated sensor readouts.

The functional characterization of electrogenic cell preparations can be performed by using high-density microelectrode arrays (HD-MEAs) featuring a very high spatial density (>5000 electrodes per mm2) of comparably small electrodes (diameters of 2-5 µm, center-to-center pitch of <15 µm). By using CMOS-based HD-MEAs it is possible to obtain comprehensive data sets across scales (subcellular resolution through single neurons to large networks) in various preparations, ranging from organotypic and acute slices to cultures of dissociated neurons and stem-cell-derived neurons. Applications include research in neural diseases and pharmacology.

Bio: Andreas Hierlemann got his college education in chemistry at the University of Tübingen, Germany and a Ph.D. degree in 1996. He held Postdoc positions in 1997 at Texas A&M University, College Station, TX and 1998 at Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM, USA. He joined the Department of Physics of ETH Zurich in 1999, where he was appointed associate professor 2004. In 2008, he became full professor in the Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering of ETH Zurich in Basel. His research interests include the development and application of microsensor, microfluidic, and microelectronic technologies to address questions in biology and medicine with applications in the fields of systems biology, drug testing, personalized medicine, and neuroscience. For details, visit bsse.ethz.ch/bel/.

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