Assessment of Yeast Cells Electroporation by Autoluminescence and Impedance Measurements

The application of pulsed electric field (PEF) is nowadays becoming a very promising tool for application in medicine or the food industry. However, the mechanisms of PEF interaction with living matter are still not fully elucidated. The aim of the presented work is to assess the electroporation phenomena in yeast cells using autoluminescence and impedance measurements. The yeast cell culture (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) is exposed to 8 pulses of 100 μs width. The corresponding electric field strength magnitude range is 2-7 kV.cm ^-1 . The frequency of the pulsing is 2 Hz, and autoluminescence is monitored during exposure. The results indicate detectable differences in autoluminescence dynamics when PEF is applied. Due to its non-invasive and label-free application, the autoluminescence could be used as a beneficial tool for monitoring PEF biological effects.