Determining mammalian cells state by fractal micromotion

Abstract

We applied four fractal dimension estimation algorithms on the temporal electrical impedance signal ofnormal MDCK type II cell cultures monitored by ECIS technique and showed that the fractal dimension dueto micromotion allows discriminating processes not sensed by the spectral impedance of the micromotion.In this work we subjected cell cultures through ionizing radiation damage, electric current damage and drugexposure to analyze the changes in the fractal structure of the temporal signal. Among the changes presentedand detected in the fractal structure are the differentiation between a healthy monolayer and one exposedto a drug, as well as the differentiation between a seeding process and a wound healing process performedby electric current. The four algorithms used were validated by applying them on topological functions ofknown fractal dimension, a study that determined the necessary conditions for a correct estimation.