Biosensors MDPI

📣Call for Reading: #Article Detection of miR-155 Using Peptide Nucleic Acid at Physiological-like Conditions by Surface Plasmon Resonance and Bio-Field Effect Transistor by Francesco Lavecchia di tocco, Valentina Botti, Salvatore Cannistraro, Anna Rita Bizzarri https://lnkd.in/gTdvKrhw #miRNA #SPR #bioFET #PeptideNucleicAcid #biosensors #mdpi #openaccess Abstract: MicroRNAs are small ribonucleotides that act as key gene regulators. Their altered expression is often associated with the onset and progression of several human diseases, including cancer. Given their potential use as biomarkers, there is a need to find detection methods for microRNAs suitable for use in clinical setting. Field-effect-transistor-based biosensors (bioFETs) appear to be valid tools to detect microRNAs, since they may reliably quantitate the specific binding between the immobilized probe and free target in solution through an easily detectable electrical signal. We have investigated the detection of human microRNA 155 (miR-155) using an innovative capturing probe constituted by a synthetic peptide nucleic acid (PNA), which has the advantage to form a duplex even at ionic strengths approaching the physiological conditions. With the aim to develop an optimized BioFET setup, the interaction kinetics between miR-155 and the chosen PNA was preliminarily investigated by using surface plasmon resonance (SPR). By exploiting both these results and our custom-made bioFET system, we were able to attain a low-cost, real-time, label-free and highly specific detection of miR-155 in the nano-molar range.

📣Call for Reading: #Review Advancing Brain Research through Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS): Current Applications and Future Prospects by Suzan Elsheikh, Nathan Coles, Ojodomo ACHADU, PhD, Panagiota Filippou, Ahmad Khundakar https://lnkd.in/gN3z2ubx #SERS #BrainResearch #biomarker #biosensors #mdpi #openaccess Abstract: Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) has recently emerged as a potent analytical technique with significant potential in the field of brain research. This review explores the applications and innovations of SERS in understanding the pathophysiological basis and diagnosis of brain disorders. SERS holds significant advantages over conventional Raman spectroscopy, particularly in terms of sensitivity and stability. The integration of label-free SERS presents promising opportunities for the rapid, reliable, and non-invasive diagnosis of brain-associated diseases, particularly when combined with advanced computational methods such as machine learning. SERS has potential to deepen our understanding of brain diseases, enhancing diagnosis, monitoring, and therapeutic interventions. Such advancements could significantly enhance the accuracy of clinical diagnosis and further our understanding of brain-related processes and diseases. This review assesses the utility of SERS in diagnosing and understanding the pathophysiological basis of brain disorders such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, stroke, and brain cancer. Recent technological advances in SERS instrumentation and techniques are discussed, including innovations in nanoparticle design, substrate materials, and imaging technologies. We also explore prospects and emerging trends, offering insights into new technologies, while also addressing various challenges and limitations associated with SERS in brain research.

#IssueCover: #Biosensors, Volume 15, Issue 10 (October 2025) – 73 articles https://lnkd.in/gxgVSGNz #CoverPaper: Application of the Combined QCM-D/LSPR Aptasensor for Penicillin G Detection https://lnkd.in/gnTMJUgH Authors: Sandro Spagnolo, Kiran Sontakke, Lukas Dubbert, Matthias Urban, Tomáš Lednický, Csáki Andrea, Katrin Wondraczek, Wolfgang Fritzsche, Tibor Hianik #mdpi #openaccess #CoverStory: This study introduced a novel dual mode detection of penicillin G (PEN) combining a quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D) with localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) utilizing immobilized DNA aptamers specific to PEN. QCM-D measures changes in resonant frequency (Δf) and dissipation (ΔD), while LSPR monitors wavelength shifts in the extinction spectra corresponding to refractive index changes at the surface of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). The limits of detection determined by QCM-D (3.0 nM) and LSPR (3.1 nM) were similar and both were lower than the maximum residue limit established by the EU. This novel approach can be used for sensitive detection of antibiotics in milk and for the study of the mechanisms of aptamer–analyte interactions at surfaces.

🤝 Meet Us at the 5th European Biosensor Symposium EuroBiosens Booth-1843 26–29 October 2025 Tarragona, Spain 📣 The European Biosensor Symposium conference is underway right now. Pleased to see you at the booth! #biosensors #EBS2025 #sensors

📣Call for Reading: #Article Microfluidic Sensor Based on Cell-Imprinted Polymer-Coated Microwires for Conductometric Detection of Bacteria in Water by Shiva Akhtarian, Ali Doostmohammadi, Daphne-Eleni Archonta, Garrett Kraft, Satinder Kaur Brar, Pouya Rezai https://lnkd.in/g5SexEhr #microfluidic #CellImprintedPolymer #microwire #bacteria #biosensors #mdpi #openaccess Abstract: The rapid, inexpensive, and on-site detection of bacterial contaminants using highly sensitive and specific microfluidic sensors is attracting substantial attention in water quality monitoring applications. Cell-imprinted polymers (CIPs) have emerged as robust, cost-effective, and versatile recognition materials with selective binding sites for capturing whole bacteria. However, electrochemical transduction of the binding event to a measurable signal within a microfluidic device to develop easy-to-use, compact, portable, durable, and affordable sensors remains a challenge. For this paper, we employed CIP-functionalized microwires (CIP-MWs) with an affinity towards E. coli and integrated them into a low-cost microfluidic sensor to measure the conductometric transduction of CIP–bacteria binding events. The sensor comprised two CIP-MWs suspended perpendicularly to a PDMS microchannel. The inter-wire electrical resistance of the microchannel was measured before, during, and after exposure of CIP-MWs to bacteria. A decline in the inter-wire resistance of the sensor after 30 min of incubation with bacteria was detected. Resistance change normalization and the subsequent analysis of the sensor’s dose-response curve between 0 to 109 CFU/mL bacteria revealed the limits of detection and quantification of 2.1 × 105 CFU/mL and 7.3 × 105 CFU/mL, respectively. The dynamic range of the sensor was 104 to 107 CFU/mL where the bacteria counts were statistically distinguishable from each other. A linear fit in this range resulted in a sensitivity of 7.35 μS per CFU/mL. Experiments using competing Sarcina or Listeria cells showed specificity of the sensor towards the imprinted E. coli cells. The reported CIP-MW-based conductometric microfluidic sensor can provide a cost-effective, durable, portable, and real-time solution for the detection of pathogens in water.

📣Call for Reading: #Review Microparticle-Based Detection of Viruses by Bradley Khanthaphixay, Lillian Wu, Jeong-Yeol Yoon https://lnkd.in/gBM6dMjp #polymeric #microparticle #virusdetection #biosensors #mdpi #openaccess Abstract: Surveillance of viral pathogens in both point-of-care and clinical settings is imperative to preventing the widespread propagation of disease—undetected viral outbreaks can pose dire health risks on a large scale. Thus, portable, accessible, and reliable biosensors are necessary for proactive measures. Polymeric microparticles have recently gained popularity for their size, surface area, and versatility, which make them ideal biosensing tools. This review cataloged recent investigations on polymeric microparticle-based detection platforms across eight virus families. These microparticles were used as labels for detection (often with fluorescent microparticles) and for capturing viruses for isolation or purification (often with magnetic microparticles). We also categorized all methods by the characteristics, materials, conjugated receptors, and size of microparticles. Current approaches were compared, addressing strengths and weaknesses in the context of virus detection. In-depth analyses were conducted for each virus family, categorizing whether the polymeric microparticles were used as labels, for capturing, or both. We also summarized the types of receptors conjugated to polymeric microparticles for each virus family.

📣Call for Reading: #Article One-Step Ultrasonic Preparation of Stable Bovine Serum Albumin-Perovskite for Fluorescence Analysis of L-Ascorbic Acid and Alkaline Phosphatase by Lei Deng, et al. https://lnkd.in/gr8PWahP #perovskite #AlkalinePhosphatase #LAscorbicAcid #fluorescence #biosensors #mdpi #openaccess Abstract: Halide lead perovskite has attracted increased attention due to its excellent optical properties. However, the poor stability of the halide lead perovskite nanocrystals has been a major obstacle to their application in biosensing. Here, we proposed a method to synthesize CsPbBr3/BSA NCs perovskite using bovine serum albumin (BSA) as a zwitterion ligand. Then, a fluorescent sensor for alkaline phosphatase determination based on CsPbBr3/BSA NCs was successfully built via the interaction of L-ascorbic acid (AA) with BSA on the perovskite surface. Under optimal conditions, the sensor showed a linear concentration range from 50 to 500 μM with a detection limit of 28 μM (signal-to-noise ratio of 3) for AA, and demonstrated a linear concentration range from 40 to 500 U/L with a detection limit of 15.5 U/L (signal-to-noise ratio of 3) for alkaline phosphatase (ALP). In addition, the proposed fluorescent biosensor exhibited good selectivity and recovery in the determination of ALP in human serum. This strategy offers an innovative way for enhancing the water stability of lead halide perovskite and promoting their application in biosensing areas.

📣Call for Reading: #Article An Integrated Microfluidic Biosensing System Based on a Versatile Valve and Recombinase Polymerase Amplification for Rapid and Sensitive Detection of Salmonella typhimurium by Yan Jin, et al. https://lnkd.in/gqi_CYWP #microfluidic #SalmonellaDetection #RPA #fluorescence #biosensors #mdpi #openaccess Abstract: Detecting foodborne pathogens on-site is crucial for ensuring food safety, necessitating the development of rapid, cost-effective, highly sensitive, and portable devices. This paper presents an integrated microfluidic biosensing system designed for the rapid and sensitive detection of Salmonella typhimurium (S. typhimurium). The biosensing system comprises a microfluidic chip with a versatile valve, a recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA) for nucleic acid detection, and a customized real-time fluorescence detection system. The versatile valve combines the functions of an active valve and a magnetic actuation mixer, enabling on-demand mixing and controlling fluid flow. Quantitative fluorescence is processed and detected through a custom-built smartphone application. The proposed integrated microfluidic biosensing system could detect Salmonella at concentrations as low as 1.0 × 102 copies/µL within 30 min, which was consistent with the results obtained from the real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) tests. With its versatile valve, this integrated microfluidic biosensing system holds significant potential for on-site detection of foodborne pathogens.

📣Call for Reading: #Article Super-Stable Metal–Organic Framework (MOF)/Luciferase Paper-Sensing Platform for Rapid ATP Detection by Héctor Martínez-Pérez-Cejuela, Maria Maddalena Calabretta, Valerio Bocci, Marcello D'Elia, Elisa Michelini https://shorturl.at/UrmKe #MOF #ATP #luciferase #papersensing #NobelPrize #biosensors #mdpi #openaccess Abstract: Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) determination has been used for many decades to assess microbial contamination for hygiene monitoring in different locations and workplace environments. Highly sophisticated methods have been reported, yet commercially available kits rely on a luciferase–luciferin system and require storage and shipping at controlled temperatures (+4 or −20 °C). The applicability of these systems is limited by the need for a secure cold chain, which is not always applicable, especially in remote areas or low-resource settings. In this scenario, easy-to-handle and portable sensors would be highly valuable. Prompted by this need, we developed a bioluminescence paper biosensor for ATP monitoring in which a new luciferase mutant was combined with a metal–organic framework (MOF); i.e., zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8). A paper biosensor was developed, ZIF-8@Luc paper sensor, and interfaced with different portable light detectors, including a silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) and smartphones. The use of ZIF-8 not only provided a five-fold increase in the bioluminescence signal, but also significantly improved the stability of the sensor, both at +4 and +28 °C. The ATP content in complex biological matrices was analyzed with the ZIF-8@Luc paper sensor, enabling detection down to 7 × 10−12 moles of ATP and 8 × 10−13 moles in bacterial lysates and urine samples, respectively. The ZIF-8@Luc sensor could, therefore, be applied in many fields in which ATP monitoring is required such as the control of microbial contamination.

📣Call for Reading: #Article The Development and Evaluation of Reagentless Glucose Biosensors Using Dendritic Gold Nanostructures as a Promising Sensing Platform by Natalija German, Anton Popov, Almira Ramanaviciene https://lnkd.in/gUN-a5xC #reagentless #glucose #gold #GOx #biosensors #mdpi #openaccess Abstract: Reagentless electrochemical glucose biosensors were developed and investigated. A graphite rod (GR) electrode modified with electrochemically synthesized dendritic gold nanostructures (DGNs) and redox mediators (Med) such as ferrocenecarboxylic acid (FCA), 1,10-phenathroline-5,6-dione (PD), N,N,N′,N′-tetramethylbenzidine (TMB) or tetrathiafulvalene (TTF) in combination with glucose oxidase (GOx) (GR/DGNs/FCA/GOx, GR/DGNs/PD/GOx, GR/DGNs/TMB/GOx, or GR/DGNs/TTF/GOx) were developed and electrochemically investigated. A biosensor based on threefold-layer-by-layer-deposited PD and GOx (GR/DGNs/(PD/GOx)3) was found to be the most suitable for the determination of glucose. To improve the performance of the developed biosensor, the surface of the GR/DGNs/(PD/GOx)3 electrode was modified with polypyrrole (Ppy) for 5 h. A glucose biosensor based on a GR/DGNs/(PD/GOx)3/Ppy(5 h) electrode was characterized using a wide linear dynamic range of up to 39.0 mmol L−1 of glucose, sensitivity of 3.03 µA mM−1 cm−2, limit of detection of 0.683 mmol L−1, and repeatability of 9.03% for a 29.4 mmol L−1 glucose concentration. The Ppy-based glucose biosensor was characterized by a good storage stability (τ1/2 = 9.0 days). Additionally, the performance of the developed biosensor in blood serum was investigated.