Real-time electrochemical measurements of ionic fluxes and bioelectric signals are set to refine cancer diagnosis and longitudinal follow-ups with the goal of targeting electrophysiological features of clinically useful matrices. Nanoengineered electrodes translate biomolecules and ions into robust electrochemical signals for both laboratory workflows and point-of-care testing. The translational aim is to integrate electrochemical sensing into coherent, physiology-grounded readouts that resolve tumor ion channel dysfunction, membrane depolarization, pericellular acidification, and redox imbalance. Realizing this vision now depends on practical engineering and clinical integration. To advance this ongoing development, researchers are building stable, disposable, portable, and miniaturized electrochemical platforms that couple detection with microfluidics to enrich tumor cells, vesicles, and bio ionic markers for multiplexed cancer measurements. The integration of wearable and implantable systems with machine learning and patient-specific digital twins will enable real-time maps of tumor electrophysiology and model-driven forecasts of treatment response. This perspective outlines a translational roadmap for electrochemical detection of bioelectric biomarkers in cancer, wherein biomarker classes are systematically mapped to corresponding transduction strategies and mechanistic fidelity is reconciled with practical assay design constraints to identify key challenges and opportunities for advancing these technologies from foundational research to validated clinical implementation in precision oncology.

Electrical stimulation has expanded beyond excitable tissues, with bioelectronic medicine exploring new therapeutic avenues. We propose a novel paradigm: continuously repeated electroporation to induce controlled Ca2+ influx and modulate cellular functions. Given the central role of Ca2+ as a second messenger tightly regulated by homeostatic mechanisms, transient permeabilization via electric fields enables perturbation of intracellular Ca2+ dynamics, influencing processes such as proliferation, differentiation, metabolism, and cell death. We define "MILD electroporation" as a process involving prolonged or repetitive mild membrane permeabilization induced by electric fields that facilitates calcium entry without causing direct cell death. At 5th World Congress on Electroporation and Pulsed Electric Fields in Biology, Medicine, and Food & Environmental Technologies, we presented in vitro evidence showing that specific electric field waveforms elicit Ca2+ oscillations in stem cells, modulating gene expression and promoting proliferation. We also presented preliminary results suggesting that burst-modulated alternating fields may slow cancer cell proliferation.

Plasmid or gene electrotransfer (GET) has been developed in animal models and validated in clinical trials for several indications, primarily cancer therapies and infectious disease vaccines. A complete understanding of the biological responses to GET is important to expanding these fields. After GET, proinflammatory signaling and cell death are detected in vitro; proinflammatory signaling, transient inflammation, and cell death may be observed in vivo. These biological effects may be due to the detection of exogenous nucleic acids by ubiquitously expressed intracellular DNA-specific pattern recognition receptors or DNA sensors. These sensors are universally expressed in mammalian cells; however, DNA sensing, including more than 20 putative, poorly characterized sensors and their interactions, is incompletely understood. The induced biological effects may contribute to therapeutic or vaccine efficacy or may require mitigation. Therefore, it is essential to understand the mechanism of DNA sensing, its signaling pathways, the extent of the biological effects, and their relationship to GET-based therapies.

To observe the effect of hawthorn red pigment (HRP) on meridian voltage in 20 volunteers over a period of 90 days. The characteristic absorption peak of HRP was determined by ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy full-wavelength absorption analysis scanning, and its solution particle size was measured by Nano-ZS Malvern laser particle size analyzer. Volunteers were required to take a 100 mL HRP solution containing 4.0 g hawthorn powder three times a day after meals. The measurement time for meridian surface voltage was from 09:00 to 11:00 after breakfast, with the first administration at 09:30. HRP had a characteristic absorption peak at 280 nm, and the average particle size was 137.03 ± 1.44 nm. Among the five volunteers who completed the experiment, the spleen meridian had the most significant decompression effect, with the initial voltage dropping from 14.11 to -7.25 mV on the seventh day (p < 0.05). In addition, the heart meridian voltage gained the most within 90 min, reaching 18.55 mV on the 28th day (p < 0.05), while the pericardium meridian had the greatest loss, with the maximum being 9.24 mV on the 28th day (p < 0.05) and 9.36 mV on the 90th day (p < 0.05). HRP has the effects of activating the heart meridian, boosting the mind, and relieving the pressure of the pericardium meridian. Regular consumption can reduce the stress on the liver, spleen, and kidney meridians, especially with a significant improvement in the spleen meridian within 28 days. This finding is consistent with the traditional efficacy of hawthorn in strengthening the spleen.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1089/bioe.2023.0034.].

Cell Bio conferences-organized jointly by the American Society of Cell Biology (ASCB) and European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO)-showcase a diverse global community of the brightest researchers in Cell Biology and in emerging interdisciplinary topics, including bioelectricity. In this report, we briefly overview the Cell Bio 2023 subgroup meeting "Bioelectricity in Development, Regeneration, and Cancers." This subgroup meeting featured 12 talks (7 Principal Investigators and 5 junior scientists) exploring the role of bioelectricity in endogenous and diseased states in model systems ranging from cells in culture to single-cell organisms such as yeast all the way to mammalian systems (including tools and technology developed for exploring bioelectricity and electrotaxis in cells and tissues). The subgroup meeting concluded with a discussion on the current challenges and opportunities for the field of bioelectricity.