Trends and challenges in electroanalytical biosensing methodologies for infectious viral diseases

Viral pandemic diseases have disruptive global consequences leading to millions of deaths and a severe impact on the global economy. Inadequate preventative protocols have led to an overwhelming demand for intensive care leading to uncontrollable burdens and even breakdown of healthcare sectors across many countries. The rapid detection of viral disease helps in the understanding of the relevant intricacies, helping to tackle infection with improved guidelines. Portable biosensor devices offer promising solutions by facilitating on-site detection of viral pathogens. This review summarizes the latest innovative strategies reported using electroanalytical methods for the screening of viral antigens. The structural components of viruses and their categories are presented followed by the various recognition elements and transduction techniques involved in biosensors. Core sections focus on biosensors reported for viral genomic detection(DNA and RNA) and antigenic capsid protein. Strategies for addressing the challenges of electroanalytical biosensing of viral components are also presented. The advantages, and disadvantages of biorecognition elements and nanozymes for the detection of viral disease are highlighted. Such technical insights will help researchers working in chemistry, and biochemistry as well as clinicians working in medical diagnostics.

Biopolymer-protected graphene-Fe3O4 nanocomposite based wearable microneedle sensor: toward real-time continuous monitoring of dopamine

Neurological disorders can occur in the human body as a result of nano-level variations in the neurotransmitter levels. Patients affected by neuropsychiatric disorders, that are chronic require continuous monitoring of these neurotransmitter levels for effective disease management. The current work focus on developing a highly sensitive and personalized sensor for continuous monitoring of dopamine. Here we propose a wearable microneedle-based electrochemical sensor, to continuously monitor dopamine in interstitial fluid (ISF). A chitosan-protected hybrid nanomaterial Fe3O4-GO composite has been used as a chemical recognition element protected by Nafion antifouling coating layer. The morphological and physiochemical characterizations of the nanocomposite were carried out with XRD, XPS, FESEM, EDAX and FT-IR. The principle of the developed sensor relies on orthogonal detection of dopamine with square wave voltammetry and chronoamperometric techniques. The microneedle sensor array exhibited an attractive analytical performance toward detecting dopamine in phosphate buffer and artificial ISF. The limit of detection (LOD) of the developed sensor was observed to be low, 90 nM in square wave voltammetry and 0.6 μM in chronoamperometric analysis. The practical applicability of the microneedle sensor array has been demonstrated on a skin-mimicking phantom gel model. The microneedle sensor also exhibited good long-term storage stability, reproducibility, and sensitivity. All of these promising results suggest that the proposed microneedle sensor array could be reliable for the continuous monitoring of dopamine.

Trends in Paper-Based Sensing Devices for Clinical and Environmental Monitoring

Environmental toxic pollutants and pathogens that enter the ecosystem are major global issues. Detection of these toxic chemicals/pollutants and the diagnosis of a disease is a first step in efficiently controlling their contamination and spread, respectively. Various analytical techniques are available to detect and determine toxic chemicals/pathogens, including liquid chromatography, HPLC, mass spectroscopy, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. However, these sensing strategies have some drawbacks such as tedious sample pretreatment and preparation, the requirement for skilled technicians, and dependence on large laboratory-based instruments. Alternatively, biosensors, especially paper-based sensors, could be used extensively and are a cost-effective alternative to conventional laboratory testing. They can improve accessibility to testing to identify chemicals and pollutants, especially in developing countries. Due to its low cost, abundance, easy disposal (by incineration, for example) and biocompatible nature, paper is considered a versatile material for the development of environmentally friendly electrochemical/optical (bio) sensor devices. This review presents an overview of sensing platforms constructed from paper, pointing out the main merits and demerits of paper-based sensing systems, their fabrication techniques, and the different optical/electrochemical detection techniques that they exploit.

Recent Trends in Biosensing and Diagnostic Methods for Novel Cancer Biomarkers

Cancer is one of the major public health issues in the world. It has become the second leading cause of death, with approximately 75% of cancer deaths transpiring in low- or middle-income countries. It causes a heavy global economic cost estimated at more than a trillion dollars per year. The most common cancers are breast, colon, rectum, prostate, and lung cancers. Many of these cancers can be treated effectively and cured if detected at the primary stage. Nowadays, around 50% of cancers are detected at late stages, leading to serious health complications and death. Early diagnosis of cancer diseases substantially increases the efficient treatment and high chances of survival. Biosensors are one of the potential screening methodologies useful in the early screening of cancer biomarkers. This review summarizes the recent findings about novel cancer biomarkers and their advantages over traditional biomarkers, and novel biosensing and diagnostic methods for them; thus, this review may be helpful in the early recognition and monitoring of treatment response of various human cancers.