Researchers at Columbia University have engineered an in vitro system that uses adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the biological cellular energy carrier, to power an integrated circuit. In the native setting, Na+/K+ ATPases hydrolyze ATP to generate energy and to maintain the cellular resting membrane potential. Researchers used these ion pumps to power a CMOS integrated circuit.
The “biocell” is composed of two lipid bilayers, embedded with ATPases from porcine cerebral cortex, stacked in series. The lipid bilayers reside in a 250-μm pore between two chambers (cis and trans) filled with a buffer solution. The biological system is connected to the integrated circuit via a thin film of Ag/AgCl, which functions as the working electrode converting ions to electrons. An Ag/AgCl pellet in the buffer solution of the cis chamber (ground) serves as the counter electrode.
Altogether, the biocell powered a voltage converter and ring oscillators in the integrated circuit and had an average chemical to electrical energy conversion efficiency of 14.9%. In the future, electronics in ATP-rich environments, like within the cell, could be powered through biological energy.
Study in Nature Communications: Hybrid integrated biological–solid-state system powered with adenosine triphosphate…
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