Recent Advances in Single Cell Analysis by Electrochemiluminescence

Understanding biological mechanisms operating in cells is one of the major goals of biology. Since heterogeneity is the fundamental property of cellular systems, single cell measurements can provide more accurate information about the composition, dynamics, and regulatory circuits of cells than population-averaged assays. Electrochemiluminescence (ECL), the light emission triggered by electrochemical reactions, is an emerging approach for single cell analysis. Numerous analytes, ranging from small biomolecules such as glucose and cholesterol, proteins and nucleic acids to subcellular structures, have been determined in single cells by ECL, which yields new insights into cellular functions. This review aims to provide an overview of research progress on ECL principles and systems for single cell analysis in recent years. The ECL reaction mechanisms are briefly introduced, and then the advances and representative works in ECL single cell analysis are summarized. Finally, outlooks and challenges in this field are addressed.