Novel coils for efficient electromagnetic stimulation of multiple cell cultures

Treatment modalities utilizing electromagnetic fields have gained recognition for their potential in promoting regeneration and addressing various disorders, with Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) and Low-Intensity Magnetic Stimulation (LIMS) as prominent examples. Understanding the effects of these treatments can be enhanced through experiments involving cell cultures exposed to electromagnetic fields. This study introduces innovative cylindrical coil systems for cell culture stimulation, allowing simultaneous stimulation of multiple cultures to enhance experimental efficiency. The performance of these novel coils is compared with conventional TMS coils regarding the induced electric field strengths in the targeted cell cultures. Simulations conducted using COMSOL Multiphysics assess the suitability of the new and conventional coil types for effective stimulation of cell cultures and analyze the comparability of the induced electric field distributions. Prototypes of the novel coils are presented, along with measurements of their properties. Results demonstrate that both novel and conventional TMS coils can achieve high-intensity cell stimulation when cell cultures are sufficiently large and correctly positioned. The novel cylindrical coils generate a rotationally symmetric electric field comparable to that of the circular coil and figure-of-8 coil within correctly positioned standard Petri dishes. This research highlights the critical role of cell culture size; inadequate culture size limits the intensity of stimulation across all examined coil systems. Further verification of the simulation results through cell culture experiments is planned.