Proliferation assay on a silicon chip applicable for tumors extirpated from mammalians

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Abstract
We describe a novel anticancer drug sensitivity assay on a silicon chip applicable for tumors extirpated from in vivo mammalians. Human promyelocytic leukemia (HL‐60) cells were subcutaneously (s.c.) inoculated in SCID mice, then removed 31 days after the inoculation. The cells were embedded in a small volume (18 nL) of a collagen‐gel matrix on a pyramid‐shaped silicon microstructure for further cultivation. The respiration activity of the cells on the chip was measured by scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM). The proliferation behavior was continuously monitored for 6 days. It seemed that the proliferation rate of the cells removed from the mice was lower than that cultured in a flask and conformed to that in mice. The effects of cisplatin (CDDP) and etoposide (VP‐16) on the HL‐60 cultured in vivo were in good agreement with those obtained by a conventional colorimetric assay. Our results suggest that the SECM‐based assay is appropriate for biopsy specimens in a relatively short‐time evaluation.