Electric pulse driven membrane poration finds applications in the fields of biomedical engineering and drug/gene delivery. Shock waves are known to permeabilize cell membranes as well. Here we focus on and analyze the synergistic effects of both inputs in concert based on molecular dynamics simulations. Our results show that shockwaves could be used for pretreating cell membranes for electroporation. The dual strategy would either reduce the external voltage requirements (leading to more compact external circuitry) or help create larger pores. Furthermore, shockwaves could form pores at any desired membrane site location, and suitable combinations of nanojets and electric pulses would help control the aspect ratio and size as desired.

Active research is invested in early diagnosis of malignant cells in order to allow scope for effective treatment. The electrical impedance measurements and the modeling techniques used to perform the calculation for dielectric permittivity, conductivity and relaxation frequency aids in the differentiation of malignant and healthy cells. The literature showed a general trend in data with malignant cells having higher electrical conductivity and lower dielectric permittivity than its surrounding healthier cells. However, the relaxation frequency that correlates with the dielectric loss factor was found twice in magnitude for cancer cells than healthy cells. The water content of a cancer cell is found higher and hence correlates with the shift in the relaxation time. The intracellular sodium ion concentration is also realized to be higher for malignant cells than normal cells and accounts for the depolarized transmembrane potential. Hence, this paper forms the framework for future technological innovation that can be taken into account to actively diagnose cancer cell.

Diagnosis in the early stage of breast cancer is crucial for the onset of preliminary treatment. Non-radiative bioimpedance measurement in the microwave frequency range can contribute to electrode-medium interface error and the malaise of electrode placement on the patient to take measurements. These reasons account for alternate diagnosis procedure and improved reliability of retrieved mensuration. Non-invasive optical diagnosis in the near infra-red (NIR) and visible light of the electromagnetic range is the shifting paradigm for healthcare diagnosis. An accurate quantitative measurement is unparalleled to circumvent false positives. The focus of this paper is to perform quantitative mathematical analysis for bioimpedance and optical properties for sample breast cancer cells for meticulous interpretation of malignant cell diagnosis. The analytical solution of the Cole–Cole plot, relaxation frequency, and capacitance measurement showed reliability with previous experimental findings. The dissimilitude of the frequency-dependent refractive index measurement of the malignant and healthy cell can be used by clinicians for pronouncement. The diffusion theory is also used to interpret the pathlength of the source light particle and the absorption property of the malignant cell. The synergistic analytical solutions of the bioimpedance and optical parameters can be used by licensed Physicians or Clinical Practitioners (CP) to meticulously interpret the diagnosis result. The quantitative parameters obtained from the dispersed bandwidth range from microwave to visible light offers a comprehensive understanding of the biophysical properties of the malignant cell.

Controlled shock wave has its application in drug delivery via induced membrane permeability. The magnitude of the impulse force to influence the membrane permeability can be abridged via communion effect of shock wave and external applied electric field of reduced threshold. Controlled shock wave have application at targeting membrane site and are used in drug delivery. Electric field influences the phospholipid bilayer structure by creating transient nanometer-sized pores and has application in targeted chemotherapeutic drug delivery. The synergistic input compensates for increased membrane permeability, reduced threshold magnitude and time for transient poration. The hypothesis is analyzed via Molecular Dynamic (MD) simulation. MARTINI coarse grain force field is used to evaluate the changes in the permeability region of the Dipalmitoyl phosphatidylcholine (DPPC) bilayers during the effect. DPPC has been used in the previous literature to model biological membranes. The hydrophobic DPPC region showed an increased permeability during the synergistic effect via transient nanopores formed due to the perturbation. The study of the time-variant synergistic effect will allow molecular-level understanding of the dynamics of the cell membrane permeability for future drug delivery procedure.

Targeted drug delivery has been the focus of medical millimeter and nanometer sized-robots along with its other biomedical applications. Magneto-electric (ME) robots uses the coupling of the magnetostrictive and piezoelectric properties to generate electric pulses. A CFO-BTO (Cobalt Iron Oxide and Barium Titanate), ferromagnetic core and ferroelectric shell is modelled using COMSOL Multiphysics simulation of 2.5mm and 5mm spherical radius that produced an electric pulse of 0.625µV of 8.33ms time scale when exposed to an external magnetic field of intensity 50 Oe at 60Hz. The ME can be externally controlled via a magnetic navigation system (MNS) and the magnetic force accounts for the ME robot to align and propel in the direction of the Human Epithelial cell (HEP). The ME robot on reaching the HEP can generate electric pulses due to its magnetoelectric property and hence create nano-sized pores on the cell membrane. The focus of this paper is to understand the real time changes occurring in the conductivity and induced transmembrane potential of the cell when the CFO-BTO is brought in the vicinity of the HEP cell. The low magnitude of a single CFO-BTO that produced 0.625V of electric field can cause an induced transmembrane potential of approximately 7µV but the synchronized ME robot can produce a higher potential change that can allow for the pore creation. An estimation in the change in the conductivity of the cell is performed using an analytical -equivalent conductivity of a permeabilized cell approach and shown an increased conductivity due to the creation of nanopores and its correlation with the induced transmembrane potential. This real time theoretical analysis allows scope for future designing and understanding the application of the CFO-BTO robot in the drug delivery procedure in a cell.

Magnetoelectric (ME) nanorobotic structures has application in targeted biological cell manipulation and optimized drug delivery. An approximate 70 nm diameter of Cobalt Ferrite- Barium Titanate, ferromagnetic core and piezoelectric shell is studied in context to its ability for nanoelectroporation in biological cell. Physics modeling is performed using COMSOL Multiphysics and quantitative analysis is used to understand the impact of applied magnetic field on the generated mechanical waves and electric pulses. The focus of this paper is to compliment relevant in vitro studies with ME nanorobots and to understand real-time changes in magnetostriction, piezoelectric and nanoelectroporation. The design of the magnetic navigation system with the relevant parameters to generate the required flux density for magnetostriction is discussed extensively. Assuming strong coupling between the core-shell, the 20 nm piezoelectric barium titanate contributes to electric pulsation that alters the membrane permeability leading to increased conductivity. This real time theoretical analysis provides scope for relevant clinical studies for engineering swarm of nm range robotic composites for targeted cell manipulation.