Lab-on-a-chip (LOC) systems are miniaturized devices that integrate several laboratory functions onto a single “chip”. These “chips” are usually passive substrates, which require most LOC systems to be used in conjunction with benchtop equipment for sensing and control. By integrating active electronics into traditional passive LOC systems, a new class of highly integrated multiphysics lab-on-CMOS (LoCMOS) systems has emerged that places instrumentation in intimate contact with sensing and actuation capabilities. The integration of active integrated circuits with signal processing, detection, and actuation increases complexity of integration but reduces the need for external instrumentation, leading to overall systems with significantly smaller size and also the potential for completely novel measurements that cannot be performed using traditional approaches.This talk will provide an overview of circuits and systems for LoC and LoCMOS systems and the technologies used to construct them. It will introduce emerging sensors for monitoring the characteristics of cultured biological cells. The integration of diagnostic sensors into LoCMOS devices poses a number of distinct and vexing challenges, including packaging, surface fouling, sterilization, communication, and system power. We will focus on sensors and technology integration for two LoCMOS applications: 1) a nose-on-a-chip that detects the spiking activity of olfactory sensory neurons; and 2) surface attachment sensors that measure the viability of cancer cells and in vivo response to chemotherapeutic agents. In each of these applications, we have demonstrated the ability to monitor the activity of individual cultured cells. This class of devices has the potential to introduce significant and disruptive changes in healthcare diagnosis and delivery in the near future.