Development of micro/nanoelectrodes for single-cell analysis

Abstract

Cell analysis is crucial for studying the life activity processes of cells and revealing the mechanisms of disease occurrence and development. Micro/nanoelectrodes, with their ultrafine dimensions, exhibit significant advantages in real-time, dynamic monitoring of individual cells owing to their miniature size, high sensitivity, and enhanced spatial and temporal resolutions. At present, multiple preparation methods about micro/nanoelectrodes have been constructed to achieve sensitive detection of single-cell. However, micro/nanoelectrodes still face challenges, particularly in achieving higher sensitivity and selectivity due to the complex internal environment of single cells, the low concentration of active molecules and dynamic changes that occur within cell, and the detected substances are relatively limited. In this review, we discuss the advances and applications of micro/nanoelectrodes for real-time dynamic monitoring of single-cell nearly 10 years.