Trans-epithelial Electrical Resistance (TEER) Device

FIG. 1 is a top right perspective view of a trans-epithelial electrical resistance (TEER) device;

FIG. 2 is a bottom rear perspective view thereof;

FIG. 3 is a top view thereof;

FIG. 4 is a bottom view thereof;

FIG. 5 is a right-side view thereof;

FIG. 6 is a left-side view thereof;

FIG. 7 is a rear view thereof; and,

FIG. 8 is a front view thereof.

The trans-epithelial electrical resistance (TEER) device uses custom electrodes and algorithms to capture, analyze, and assess electrical resistance associated with stage of cell monolayer development in barrier models. These models typically have an insert with a membrane where the cell monolayer grows and a receiver well, usually in a plate format. The measurement provides scientists with quantitative information to determine when the cell monolayer is ready for further stages in the experiment workflow. To determine this, a cell suspension with media is seeded into a cell culture insert (apical side), media is also added to the receiver well of the receiver plate (basolateral side). The plate is covered and incubated for a period of time. The monolayer is then measured at a known time by introducing electrodes in the apical and basolateral sides of the plate assembly. The resistance is measured indicating the density of the monolayer. These readings are visualized, captured (typically multiple wells) and organized in a meaningful array via enhanced software and graphical prompting via platemaps. When it has reached the optimal density, the monolayer is ready for further analysis of the barrier function experiments. These readings are stored for use in digital lab notebooks and can be accessed via a custom portal in the cloud for further analysis.

The TEER device is compact system comprised of an intuitive display and touchscreen interface central structure containing the cell culture insert and the receiver plate as well as the means for measuring the platemaps for cell monolayer growth as described above. The TEER device also comprises means to visually access the measurement data as well as store the data through a graphical user interface and various connectors.