Measurement of the intracellular concentration of oxygen in a cell perfusion system.

[O2] was measured in the embedding material (alginate) in a typical apparatus for conducting studies of viable cells with NMR, using low frequency EPR. In suspension cultures respiration was independent of [O2] in the perfusing media down to about 1 microM while in alginate beads, the comparable value was 70 microM, indicating that the alginate was a very substantial barrier to the free diffusion of oxygen. With knowledge of [O2] in the various compartments, [O2] in the perfusing medium can be increased and the full power of NMR can be used to provide information on metabolism under various conditions. These results also provide evidence supporting the feasibility and usefulness of EPR techniques using nitroxides to measure [O2] in macroscopic samples such as NMR perfusion tubes. This technique is rapid, apparently nonperturbing, and enables one to differentiate between the concentrations of oxygen in different compartments.