The present invention relates to devices and methods of use thereof for
making semiderivative voltammetric and chronoamperometric measurements of
chemicals, e.g. neurotransmitters, precursors, and metabolites, in vitro,
in vivo, or in situ. The invention relates to methods of diagnosing
and/or treating a subject as having or being at risk of developing a
disease or condition that is associated with abnormal levels of one or
more neurotransmitters including, inter alia, epilepsy, diseases of the
basal ganglia, athetoid, dystonic diseases, neoplasms, Parkinson's
disease, brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, and cancer. The invention
provides methods of differentiating white matter from grey matter using
microvoltammetry. In some embodiments, regions of the brain to be
resected or targeted for pharmaceutical therapy are identified using
Broderick probes. The invention further provides methods of measuring the
neurotoxicity of a material by comparing Broderick probe
microvoltammograms of a neural tissue in the presence and absence of the
material.