Direct biologically based biosensing of dynamic physiological function

Abstract

Dynamic regulation of biological systems requires real-time assessment of relevant physiological needs. Biosensors, which transduce biological actions or reactions into signals amenable to processing, are well suited for such monitoring. Typically, in vivo biosensors approximate physiological function via the measurement of surrogate signals. The alternative approach presented here would be to use biologically based biosensors for the direct measurement of physiological activity via functional integration of relevant governing inputs. We show that an implanted excitable-tissue biosensor (excitable cardiac tissue) can be used as a real-time, integrated bioprocessor to analyze the complex inputs regulating a dynamic physiological variable (heart rate). This approach offers the potential for long-term biologically tuned quantification of endogenous physiological function.