(295f) Comprehensive Analysis Enabled By Multi-Bore Carbon Fiber Microelectrodes: Simultaneous and Ultra-Fast Detection of Neurotransmitters and Toxic Metals

Despite the significant growth in the neuroprotective drug market, there is a rising number of diagnosed neurological disorders worldwide; thus, understanding the multifactorial etiology of these conditions is crucial. While extensive research has focused on aging's relationship with disease onset, other factors such as environmental influences, particularly toxic metals, remain understudied. Additionally, there's a lack of experimental data on co-transmission's regulation and functional effects, despite its presumed role in neuronal survival control. Consequently, there's a pressing need for a tool capable of real-time, simultaneous multi-analyte detection to advance research in these areas. In our study, we fabricate double-bore and four-bore carbon fiber microelectrodes capable of concurrently detecting neurotransmitters and toxic metals using fast-scan cyclic voltammetry with a temporal resolution of 100 ms. We characterize these multi-bore electrodes with neurotransmitters like dopamine, serotonin, and ascorbic acid, as well as toxic metal ions such as copper, cadmium, and arsenic in tris buffer, simulating artificial cerebellum fluid. The nanometer-scale gaps between individual electrodes render the assembly compact. Remarkably, these electrodes withstand electrical noise when cycled with different waveforms at rapid scan rates. Furthermore, the surface of each individual electrode is functionalized with various surface modification agents to optimize performance. Calibration curves are constructed to define analytical parameters such as linear range and limit of detection. Our findings reveal higher sensitivity of multi-bore electrodes compared to single-bore electrodes, a promising step towards simultaneous detection. Preliminary data suggest translatability to in vivo detection with excellent selectivity and sensitivity, facilitating a deeper understanding of neurological disorder etiology.