Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-12DOI: 10.1016/j.microc.2026.117346
Wenting Li , Yongqiang Shi , Xinai Zhang , Jiyong Shi , Yuanyuan Zhu , Yongjian Yu , Dong Han , Xiaobo Zou
Peanuts are prone to fungal contamination during both production and storage, threatening food safety and public health. Ergosterol (Erg), a specific sterol in fungal cell membranes, functions as an effective biomarker for the early detection of fungal infections. This study introduces an electrochemical sensor using biomimetic hierarchical dendritic gold nanostructures (HDGNs) for rapid and sensitive Erg detection. Inspired by the hierarchical branching architecture of natural dendrites, HDGNs offer a high specific surface area and facilitate efficient electron transport. A bio-inspired sensing platform was developed by modifying indium tin oxide (ITO) electrode with HDGNs. Employing differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) method, the sensor exhibited a broad analytical range for Erg with a low detection limit of 3.8 ng/mL. Quantitative analysis between peanut samples was performed by the standard addition method to eliminate the sample matrix effects. Spike-and-recovery tests on peanut samples closely matched high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) results, with a relative error under 4.1%. Overall, this study introduces an efficient, cost-effective method for rapid Erg quantification and highlights the potential of biomimetic nanostructures in early food mildew detection and food safety monitoring.
{"title":"Bio-inspired interface engineering: hierarchical dendritic gold nanostructures for ultrasensitive electrochemical detection of fungal contamination biomarker","authors":"Wenting Li , Yongqiang Shi , Xinai Zhang , Jiyong Shi , Yuanyuan Zhu , Yongjian Yu , Dong Han , Xiaobo Zou","doi":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117346","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117346","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Peanuts are prone to fungal contamination during both production and storage, threatening food safety and public health. Ergosterol (Erg), a specific sterol in fungal cell membranes, functions as an effective biomarker for the early detection of fungal infections. This study introduces an electrochemical sensor using biomimetic hierarchical dendritic gold nanostructures (HDGNs) for rapid and sensitive Erg detection. Inspired by the hierarchical branching architecture of natural dendrites, HDGNs offer a high specific surface area and facilitate efficient electron transport. A bio-inspired sensing platform was developed by modifying indium tin oxide (ITO) electrode with HDGNs. Employing differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) method, the sensor exhibited a broad analytical range for Erg with a low detection limit of 3.8 ng/mL. Quantitative analysis between peanut samples was performed by the standard addition method to eliminate the sample matrix effects. Spike-and-recovery tests on peanut samples closely matched high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) results, with a relative error under 4.1%. Overall, this study introduces an efficient, cost-effective method for rapid Erg quantification and highlights the potential of biomimetic nanostructures in early food mildew detection and food safety monitoring.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":391,"journal":{"name":"Microchemical Journal","volume":"223 ","pages":"Article 117346"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146172580","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-07DOI: 10.1016/j.microc.2026.117220
Rakesh A. Mohite , Satish B. Jadhav , Sohel Shaikh , Rohan Mohite , Sandip R. Sabale , Vinayak G. Parale , Minjae Kim , Padmaja N. Pawaskar
A highly sensitive and accurate measurement of blood glucose levels is essential for preventing and managing diabetes. In this study, nanopebble-structured nickel tungstate (NiWO₄) and cobalt tungstate (CoWO₄) thin film electrodes were synthesized on stainless steel (SS) substrates using the cost-effective successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) technique. This method enabled the formation of a highly porous, nanocrystalline, and binder-free adherent film, which significantly enhanced the electrochemical sensing performance. The NiWO₄ thin film electrode exhibited outstanding sensitivity of 4130 μA·mM−1·cm−2 within a linear detection range of 50–800 μM, surpassing that of the CoWO₄ electrode (3432 μA·mM−1·cm−2). The LOD values for NiWO₄ and CoWO₄ were determined to be 14.9 μM and 16.7 μM, respectively, confirming that the NiWO₄ electrode offers superior detection capability and higher analytical reliability compared to the CoWO₄ film electrode. Furthermore, glucose concentrations in real blood samples were accurately quantified using the proposed nanocrystalline electrodes. The measurement accuracy was 95.68% for NiWO₄ and 93.20% for CoWO₄ when benchmarked against a commercial glucometer, confirming the practical applicability of these electrodes and highlighting their potential for the development of advanced non-enzymatic sensing technologies.
{"title":"SILAR-derived NiWO₄ and CoWO₄ Nanopebble electrocatalysts for non-enzymatic glucose detection in real blood samples","authors":"Rakesh A. Mohite , Satish B. Jadhav , Sohel Shaikh , Rohan Mohite , Sandip R. Sabale , Vinayak G. Parale , Minjae Kim , Padmaja N. Pawaskar","doi":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117220","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117220","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>A highly sensitive and accurate measurement of blood glucose levels is essential for preventing and managing diabetes. In this study, nanopebble-structured nickel tungstate (NiWO₄) and cobalt tungstate (CoWO₄) thin film electrodes were synthesized on stainless steel (SS) substrates using the cost-effective successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) technique. This method enabled the formation of a highly porous, nanocrystalline, and binder-free adherent film, which significantly enhanced the electrochemical sensing performance. The NiWO₄ thin film electrode exhibited outstanding sensitivity of 4130 μA·mM<sup>−1</sup>·cm<sup>−2</sup> within a linear detection range of 50–800 μM, surpassing that of the CoWO₄ electrode (3432 μA·mM<sup>−1</sup>·cm<sup>−2</sup>). The LOD values for NiWO₄ and CoWO₄ were determined to be 14.9 μM and 16.7 μM, respectively, confirming that the NiWO₄ electrode offers superior detection capability and higher analytical reliability compared to the CoWO₄ film electrode. Furthermore, glucose concentrations in real blood samples were accurately quantified using the proposed nanocrystalline electrodes. The measurement accuracy was 95.68% for NiWO₄ and 93.20% for CoWO₄ when benchmarked against a commercial glucometer, confirming the practical applicability of these electrodes and highlighting their potential for the development of advanced non-enzymatic sensing technologies.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":391,"journal":{"name":"Microchemical Journal","volume":"223 ","pages":"Article 117220"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146172584","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-09DOI: 10.1016/j.microc.2026.117322
Jyotsna Dhubkarya , Pranjal Kumar Yadav , S. Ponmariappan
Botulinum neurotoxin type E (BoNT/E) poses a significant threat to food safety and public health, necessitating sensitive and reliable detection strategies capable of operating in complex sample matrices. In this study, biolayer interferometry (BLI) was employed to characterize the binding kinetics and analytical performance of polyclonal IgG antibodies raised against the recombinant BoNT/E binding domain. Both mice and rabbit-derived IgG exhibited specific, high-affinity interactions, with dissociation constants in the nanomolar range, and rabbit-derived IgG showing stronger binding than mouse-derived IgG. Quantitative detection based on equilibrium response (Req) values yielded limits of detection of 27.15 ng/mL and 6.86 ng/mL for mouse and rabbit IgG, respectively. Evaluation in food matrices revealed pronounced matrix-dependent effects on binding kinetics and assay performance. Honey and milk supported stable interactions and high recovery, chicken extract showed moderate kinetic modulation with acceptable recovery, whereas prawn extract caused rapid dissociation and reduced detection accuracy. Overall, the study demonstrates that BLI enables integrated assessment of antibody affinity, analytical sensitivity, and matrix effects, providing a rational framework for assay optimization and antibody selection for BoNT/E detection in complex food systems.
{"title":"Bio-layer interferometry–based immunoassay characterization of BoNT/E binding domain interactions in complex food matrices","authors":"Jyotsna Dhubkarya , Pranjal Kumar Yadav , S. Ponmariappan","doi":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117322","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117322","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Botulinum neurotoxin type E (BoNT/E) poses a significant threat to food safety and public health, necessitating sensitive and reliable detection strategies capable of operating in complex sample matrices. In this study, biolayer interferometry (BLI) was employed to characterize the binding kinetics and analytical performance of polyclonal IgG antibodies raised against the recombinant BoNT/E binding domain. Both mice and rabbit-derived IgG exhibited specific, high-affinity interactions, with dissociation constants in the nanomolar range, and rabbit-derived IgG showing stronger binding than mouse-derived IgG. Quantitative detection based on equilibrium response (R<sub>eq</sub>) values yielded limits of detection of 27.15 ng/mL and 6.86 ng/mL for mouse and rabbit IgG, respectively. Evaluation in food matrices revealed pronounced matrix-dependent effects on binding kinetics and assay performance. Honey and milk supported stable interactions and high recovery, chicken extract showed moderate kinetic modulation with acceptable recovery, whereas prawn extract caused rapid dissociation and reduced detection accuracy. Overall, the study demonstrates that BLI enables integrated assessment of antibody affinity, analytical sensitivity, and matrix effects, providing a rational framework for assay optimization and antibody selection for BoNT/E detection in complex food systems.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":391,"journal":{"name":"Microchemical Journal","volume":"223 ","pages":"Article 117322"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146172674","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-11DOI: 10.1016/j.microc.2026.117338
Longping Xu , Dan Meng , Ruowei Liu , Yijun Tan , Mingming Luo , Fang Li , Zijian Wu
Antibiotics are broadly utilised for treating various bacterial infections in humans and livestock. Nevertheless, their excessive overuse has facilitated the dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes along the food chain to humans, posing a substantial health hazards. Therefore, nanomaterial-driven multimodal aptasensing technologies have emerged as a transformative solution, integrating the high selectivity of aptamers with the exceptional surface signal adjustment mechanism of nanomaterials, thereby providing distinct benefits in antibiotic residue detection. This paper first explores the application of single-modal aptasensor in antibiotic detection, leveraging the advantageous functional properties of nanomaterials. It then focuses on reviewing the sensing principles of multimodal aptasensors and their latest advances in detecting antibiotic residues in animal-derived foods. Multimodal aptasensors integrate two or more distinct sensing mechanisms (e.g., fluorescent-colorimetric, fluorescent-colorimetric-SERS), enabling the synchronous triggering of multiple independent signals while enhancing detection reliability and accuracy through cross-validation among these signals. This type of sensor effectively overcomes the limitations in detection performance inherent to single-modal aptasensors. Compared with existing reviews, this paper further elucidates the advantages of multimodal aptasensing technologies, thereby addressing shortcomings in prior analyses of this field. Furthermore, this study examines the current challenges and future development potential of aptasensing technology, aiming to establish a theoretical foundation for the development of rapid, highly sensitive, precise, and user-friendly multimodal platforms. This will ultimately provide innovative strategies and developmental directions for analysing antibiotic residues in animal-derived foods
{"title":"Recent progress in nanomaterial-driven multimodal aptasensing of antibiotic residues in animal-derived foods","authors":"Longping Xu , Dan Meng , Ruowei Liu , Yijun Tan , Mingming Luo , Fang Li , Zijian Wu","doi":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117338","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117338","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Antibiotics are broadly utilised for treating various bacterial infections in humans and livestock. Nevertheless, their excessive overuse has facilitated the dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes along the food chain to humans, posing a substantial health hazards. Therefore, nanomaterial-driven multimodal aptasensing technologies have emerged as a transformative solution, integrating the high selectivity of aptamers with the exceptional surface signal adjustment mechanism of nanomaterials, thereby providing distinct benefits in antibiotic residue detection. This paper first explores the application of single-modal aptasensor in antibiotic detection, leveraging the advantageous functional properties of nanomaterials. It then focuses on reviewing the sensing principles of multimodal aptasensors and their latest advances in detecting antibiotic residues in animal-derived foods. Multimodal aptasensors integrate two or more distinct sensing mechanisms (e.g., fluorescent-colorimetric, fluorescent-colorimetric-SERS), enabling the synchronous triggering of multiple independent signals while enhancing detection reliability and accuracy through cross-validation among these signals. This type of sensor effectively overcomes the limitations in detection performance inherent to single-modal aptasensors. Compared with existing reviews, this paper further elucidates the advantages of multimodal aptasensing technologies, thereby addressing shortcomings in prior analyses of this field. Furthermore, this study examines the current challenges and future development potential of aptasensing technology, aiming to establish a theoretical foundation for the development of rapid, highly sensitive, precise, and user-friendly multimodal platforms. This will ultimately provide innovative strategies and developmental directions for analysing antibiotic residues in animal-derived foods</div></div>","PeriodicalId":391,"journal":{"name":"Microchemical Journal","volume":"223 ","pages":"Article 117338"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146172919","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-11DOI: 10.1016/j.microc.2026.117348
Xiaojing Zhou , Xuan Fang , Kunpeng Xue , Changyou Deng , Na Ma , Wei Dai
The traditional porous carbon as a drug carrier still has some drawbacks, such as irregular shape, low drug loading capacity, and uncontrollable release time. In this study, highly spherical hydroxyapatite-mesoporous carbon microspheres (HSPC) with an ordered mesoporous structure were successfully prepared. Hydroxyapatite (HAp) and glucose were used as precursors, and the water-based hydrothermal synthesis and high-temperature calcination methods were adopted. The reaction conditions were optimized. Specifically, the reaction time was set at 3 h, and the initial glucose concentration was 2.5 M. The obtained HSPC has a high specific surface area (668.62 m2/g), a large pore volume (0.29 cm3/g), and an abundant mesoporous structure (pore diameters of 3.30–4.20 nm). As a sustained-release carrier, the drug loading capacity of HSPC for ornidazole (ONZ) reached 210.20 mg/g, and for metronidazole (MNZ) reached 200.30 mg/g. The experiments involving the release of the studied drugs showed that HSPC is pH-sensitive, and the release rate in gastric fluid (pH 1.5) was significantly higher than that in intestinal fluid (pH 7.4) and oral environment (pH 7). This release process followed the Korsmeyer-Peppas diffusion model, demonstrating long-term sustained-release characteristics. Moreover, HSPC exhibited extremely high stability during repeated drug loading cycles. This material combines excellent biocompatibility and sustained-release performance, providing an important reference for the development of new drug carriers.
{"title":"Enhanced sustained release of nitroimidazole via hydroxyapatite-derived spherical mesoporous carbon carrier","authors":"Xiaojing Zhou , Xuan Fang , Kunpeng Xue , Changyou Deng , Na Ma , Wei Dai","doi":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117348","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117348","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The traditional porous carbon as a drug carrier still has some drawbacks, such as irregular shape, low drug loading capacity, and uncontrollable release time. In this study, highly spherical hydroxyapatite-mesoporous carbon microspheres (HSPC) with an ordered mesoporous structure were successfully prepared. Hydroxyapatite (HAp) and glucose were used as precursors, and the water-based hydrothermal synthesis and high-temperature calcination methods were adopted. The reaction conditions were optimized. Specifically, the reaction time was set at 3 h, and the initial glucose concentration was 2.5 M. The obtained HSPC has a high specific surface area (668.62 m<sup>2</sup>/g), a large pore volume (0.29 cm<sup>3</sup>/g), and an abundant mesoporous structure (pore diameters of 3.30–4.20 nm). As a sustained-release carrier, the drug loading capacity of HSPC for ornidazole (ONZ) reached 210.20 mg/g, and for metronidazole (MNZ) reached 200.30 mg/g. The experiments involving the release of the studied drugs showed that HSPC is pH-sensitive, and the release rate in gastric fluid (pH 1.5) was significantly higher than that in intestinal fluid (pH 7.4) and oral environment (pH 7). This release process followed the Korsmeyer-Peppas diffusion model, demonstrating long-term sustained-release characteristics. Moreover, HSPC exhibited extremely high stability during repeated drug loading cycles. This material combines excellent biocompatibility and sustained-release performance, providing an important reference for the development of new drug carriers.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":391,"journal":{"name":"Microchemical Journal","volume":"223 ","pages":"Article 117348"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146173060","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-06DOI: 10.1016/j.microc.2026.117305
Chengjie Ma , Chun-Yue Han , Zhi-Xian Qiao , Yan Wang , Fei-Long Liu
Acidic pharmaceuticals are associated with the effects in organs and carcinogenicity. However, it's still challenging for the simultaneous trace detection of acid pharmaceuticals. In this work, we developed a chemical labeling strategy with liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC − MS/MS) method for simultaneous determination of acidic pharmaceuticals in the water sample. A pair of light and heavy stable isotope labeling reagents (DMPI/d3-DMPI) were applied to label acidic pharmaceuticals. Upon the chemical labeling strategy, acidic pharmaceuticals can obtain better chromatographic performance on the reversed-phase (RP) column, and the detection sensitivities of acidic pharmaceuticals increased 3–1283- fold with the limits of detection (LODs) ranging from 0.001 to 0.008 ng mL−1. With this developed method, we achieved simultaneous and accurate quantification of 20 acidic pharmaceuticals in different wastewater samples. Taking account of the high sensitivity, this developed method was further applied to detect acidic pharmaceuticals from water samples, which provides a promising and valuable tool for investigating the presence of pharmaceuticals in environment.
酸性药物与器官的影响和致癌性有关。然而，酸性药物的同时痕量检测仍然具有挑战性。在这项工作中，我们开发了一种化学标记策略，采用液相色谱串联质谱（LC - MS/MS）方法同时测定水样中的酸性药物。采用轻、重稳定同位素标记试剂（DMPI/d3-DMPI）对酸性药品进行标记。采用化学标记策略后，酸性药物在反相（RP）柱上可以获得更好的色谱性能，检测灵敏度提高3-1283倍，检出限（lod）范围为0.001 ~ 0.008 ng mL−1。利用该方法，我们实现了不同废水样品中20种酸性药物的同时准确定量。该方法具有较高的灵敏度，可进一步应用于水样中酸性药物的检测，为研究环境中药物的存在提供了一种有前景和价值的工具。
{"title":"Sensitive profiling of acidic pharmaceuticals exposure in environment by stable isotope labeling assisted LC − MS analysis","authors":"Chengjie Ma , Chun-Yue Han , Zhi-Xian Qiao , Yan Wang , Fei-Long Liu","doi":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117305","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117305","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Acidic pharmaceuticals are associated with the effects in organs and carcinogenicity. However, it's still challenging for the simultaneous trace detection of acid pharmaceuticals. In this work, we developed a chemical labeling strategy with liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC − MS/MS) method for simultaneous determination of acidic pharmaceuticals in the water sample. A pair of light and heavy stable isotope labeling reagents (DMPI/<em>d</em><sub><em>3</em></sub>-DMPI) were applied to label acidic pharmaceuticals. Upon the chemical labeling strategy, acidic pharmaceuticals can obtain better chromatographic performance on the reversed-phase (RP) column, and the detection sensitivities of acidic pharmaceuticals increased 3–1283- fold with the limits of detection (LODs) ranging from 0.001 to 0.008 ng mL<sup>−1</sup>. With this developed method, we achieved simultaneous and accurate quantification of 20 acidic pharmaceuticals in different wastewater samples. Taking account of the high sensitivity, this developed method was further applied to detect acidic pharmaceuticals from water samples, which provides a promising and valuable tool for investigating the presence of pharmaceuticals in environment.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":391,"journal":{"name":"Microchemical Journal","volume":"223 ","pages":"Article 117305"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146147273","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-13DOI: 10.1016/j.microc.2026.117363
Siheng Lu , Qian Qin , Yue Yu , Zhongyang Ren , Zhanming Li
Spectral techniques, featuring non-destructiveness, rapidity, and simultaneous correlation with multiple quality metrics, integrate with machine learning that plays a core role in high-dimensional complex data analysis, becoming a prominent focus in coffee quality evaluation. Based on coffee quality control needs, this review systematically synthesized advances in the combined use of spectral technology and machine learning for detecting coffee physicochemical properties, flavor compounds, and safety indicators. We also identified prevalent research challenges, such as matrix interference, inadequate small-sample model generalization, and multispectral data fusion hurdles, as well as industrial bottlenecks including significant sample matrix variations, insufficient datasets, and poor industrial adaptability of existing methods. In the future, great efforts should be made to achieve breakthroughs in key areas including multimodal data fusion, algorithm lightweighting, and standardized system establishment, which will propel coffee industry innovation and provide references for related research.
{"title":"Machine learning-enhanced spectroscopic analysis in coffee quality assessment: Current challenges and future prospects","authors":"Siheng Lu , Qian Qin , Yue Yu , Zhongyang Ren , Zhanming Li","doi":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117363","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117363","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Spectral techniques, featuring non-destructiveness, rapidity, and simultaneous correlation with multiple quality metrics, integrate with machine learning that plays a core role in high-dimensional complex data analysis, becoming a prominent focus in coffee quality evaluation. Based on coffee quality control needs, this review systematically synthesized advances in the combined use of spectral technology and machine learning for detecting coffee physicochemical properties, flavor compounds, and safety indicators. We also identified prevalent research challenges, such as matrix interference, inadequate small-sample model generalization, and multispectral data fusion hurdles, as well as industrial bottlenecks including significant sample matrix variations, insufficient datasets, and poor industrial adaptability of existing methods. In the future, great efforts should be made to achieve breakthroughs in key areas including multimodal data fusion, algorithm lightweighting, and standardized system establishment, which will propel coffee industry innovation and provide references for related research.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":391,"journal":{"name":"Microchemical Journal","volume":"223 ","pages":"Article 117363"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147385962","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-13DOI: 10.1016/j.microc.2026.117369
Qing Liu , Tigang Ning , Jing Li , Li Pei , Zhouyi Hu , Lanju Liang , Xin Yan , Mengna Li , Haiyun Yao , Zhenhua Li , Ziqun Wang , Xiaofei Hu , Yanrui Li
Recently, quasi-bound states in the continuum (QBICs) have emerged as a distinctive energy-coupling mechanism with significant potential in biosensing and THz metasurface-based electromagnetic modulation. However, conventional single-QBIC sensors are inherently limited by their ultranarrow resonance bandwidth, which confines sensing to single-point spectral tracking, thereby reducing the robustness and information content of quantitative detection. Here, we propose a THz plasmonic metasensor using dual-QBICs to produce multiple resonances to produce multiple spectrally correlated resonances, enabling multi-point spectral interrogation. The sensor allows gradient concentration detection of water contaminants such as Escherichia coli (E. coli) through dielectric responses. Moreover, graphene oxide (GO) integration enhances gradient concentration detection of erythromycin via GO-mediated modulation of the QBIC resonance. Among them, the transmission sensitivity for E. coli reached −3.28%/decade, while the frequency sensitivity reached −3.8 GHz/decade. For erythromycin, the transmission sensitivity reached 1.09%/decade. The limit of detection reaches 2.3 × 106 cells/mL for E. coli and 0.1 μg/mL for erythromycin. To fully exploit the multi-resonant QBIC response, a time–frequency feature extraction strategy is employed to enhance the robustness and quantitative interpretability of the sensing response. Overall, the proposed metasensor enables sensitive detection of water contaminants and establishes a versatile framework for studying resonance modulation and coupling effects in QBIC-based metasurfaces.
{"title":"An advanced dual-QBICs THz metasensor enhanced by graphene-oxide for contaminant detection in water","authors":"Qing Liu , Tigang Ning , Jing Li , Li Pei , Zhouyi Hu , Lanju Liang , Xin Yan , Mengna Li , Haiyun Yao , Zhenhua Li , Ziqun Wang , Xiaofei Hu , Yanrui Li","doi":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117369","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117369","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Recently, quasi-bound states in the continuum (QBICs) have emerged as a distinctive energy-coupling mechanism with significant potential in biosensing and THz metasurface-based electromagnetic modulation. However, conventional single-QBIC sensors are inherently limited by their ultranarrow resonance bandwidth, which confines sensing to single-point spectral tracking, thereby reducing the robustness and information content of quantitative detection. Here, we propose a THz plasmonic metasensor using dual-QBICs to produce multiple resonances to produce multiple spectrally correlated resonances, enabling multi-point spectral interrogation. The sensor allows gradient concentration detection of water contaminants such as <em>Escherichia coli</em> (<em>E. coli</em>) through dielectric responses. Moreover, graphene oxide (GO) integration enhances gradient concentration detection of erythromycin via GO-mediated modulation of the QBIC resonance. Among them, the transmission sensitivity for <em>E. coli</em> reached −3.28%/decade, while the frequency sensitivity reached −3.8 GHz/decade. For erythromycin, the transmission sensitivity reached 1.09%/decade. The limit of detection reaches 2.3 × 10<sup>6</sup> cells/mL for <em>E. coli</em> and 0.1 μg/mL for erythromycin. To fully exploit the multi-resonant QBIC response, a time–frequency feature extraction strategy is employed to enhance the robustness and quantitative interpretability of the sensing response. Overall, the proposed metasensor enables sensitive detection of water contaminants and establishes a versatile framework for studying resonance modulation and coupling effects in QBIC-based metasurfaces.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":391,"journal":{"name":"Microchemical Journal","volume":"223 ","pages":"Article 117369"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147385967","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-13DOI: 10.1016/j.microc.2026.117360
Sundus Azhar , Khuram Shahzad Ahmad , Jehad S.Al-Hawadi , Isaac Abrahams , Wang Lin , Ram K. Gupta , Anees A. Ansari , Amal BaQais
In the current work, we have prepared novel Bi2O3-based nanomaterials for the application of energy storage supercapacitors and energy generation overall water splitting via a facile green synthesis route. Bi2O3 is hydrothermally doped by different concentrations of La2O3 ranging from 2.5% to 10% in the presence of phyto (bio) reducing and stabilizing agents to obtain phytochemicals incorporated La2O3 doped Bi2O3 as A.viridis[Bi2O3:La2O3] nanomaterials. All samples of synthesized materials are fully characterized by scanning electron microscopy, X-rays diffractometry, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy. A.viridis[Bi2O3:La2O3] nanomaterial-based Bi2O3:La2O3-NF electrode reveals higher specific capacitance of 890 F/g at 2 mV/s to 300 mV/s and 292 F/g at 1 A/g by cyclic voltammetry and galvanostatic charge-discharge respectively. Bi2O3:La2O3-NF expresses a higher energy density of 14 Wh/Kg with excellent rate stability. As a bifunctional electrocatalyst, Bi2O3:La2O3-NF reveals a lower overpotential of 133 mV with a Tafel slope value of 191 mV/dec for 10 mA/cm2 current density. Furthermore, Bi2O3:La2O3-NF electrocatalyst demonstrates excellent stability till the 1000 LSV cycle and superior durability till 20 h of chronoamperometry studies. Overall results of the study well demonstrated significant energy storage and generation.
{"title":"Facile green synthesis of La2O3 doped Bi2O3 nanomaterials for supercapacitor and overall water splitting applications","authors":"Sundus Azhar , Khuram Shahzad Ahmad , Jehad S.Al-Hawadi , Isaac Abrahams , Wang Lin , Ram K. Gupta , Anees A. Ansari , Amal BaQais","doi":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117360","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117360","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In the current work, we have prepared novel Bi<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-based nanomaterials for the application of energy storage supercapacitors and energy generation overall water splitting via a facile green synthesis route. Bi<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> is hydrothermally doped by different concentrations of La<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> ranging from 2.5% to 10% in the presence of phyto (bio) reducing and stabilizing agents to obtain phytochemicals incorporated La<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> doped Bi<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> as <em>A.viridis</em>[Bi<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>:La<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>] nanomaterials. All samples of synthesized materials are fully characterized by scanning electron microscopy, X-rays diffractometry, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy. <em>A.viridis</em>[Bi<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>:La<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>] nanomaterial-based Bi<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>:La<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NF electrode reveals higher specific capacitance of 890 F/g at 2 mV/s to 300 mV/s and 292 F/g at 1 A/g by cyclic voltammetry and galvanostatic charge-discharge respectively. Bi<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>:La<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NF expresses a higher energy density of 14 Wh/Kg with excellent rate stability. As a bifunctional electrocatalyst, Bi<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>:La<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NF reveals a lower overpotential of 133 mV with a Tafel slope value of 191 mV/dec for 10 mA/cm<sup>2</sup> current density. Furthermore, Bi<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>:La<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NF electrocatalyst demonstrates excellent stability till the 1000 LSV cycle and superior durability till 20 h of chronoamperometry studies. Overall results of the study well demonstrated significant energy storage and generation.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":391,"journal":{"name":"Microchemical Journal","volume":"223 ","pages":"Article 117360"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147385994","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-11DOI: 10.1016/j.microc.2026.117340
Yuke Ren , Raojun Luo , Fei Wang , Ziyi Zhu , Guojun Lv , Haibin Cui
Esophageal cancer remains a significant health challenge due to its high incidence and mortality. Our previous study demonstrated that gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) analysis of exhaled volatile organic compounds (VOCs) could provide accurate diagnostic models for esophageal cancer. However, the complexity and high cost of GC–MS limit its applicability for large-scale population screening.
In this study, we propose a complementary, more clinically feasible approach: a portable diagnostic system based on a multimodal gas sensor array integrated with deep learning algorithms. Unlike GC–MS, this system requires no pre-concentration and allows for rapid, non-invasive, on-site breath analysis. We analyzed breath samples from 120 participants (68 patients and 52 healthy controls). After feature selection using Particle Swarm Optimization, a Residual Neural Network model achieved an accuracy of 83%, sensitivity of 86%, specificity of 79%, and an AUC of 0.91.
This study not only addresses the practical limitations of GC–MS but also highlights the potential of sensor-array-based strategies as a cost-effective and scalable tool for early esophageal cancer detection. Our approach represents a methodological advancement, surpassing previous VOC-based studies.
{"title":"Breath-based esophageal cancer diagnosis using an electronic nose with multimodal sensor array and machine learning","authors":"Yuke Ren , Raojun Luo , Fei Wang , Ziyi Zhu , Guojun Lv , Haibin Cui","doi":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117340","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.microc.2026.117340","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Esophageal cancer remains a significant health challenge due to its high incidence and mortality. Our previous study demonstrated that gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) analysis of exhaled volatile organic compounds (VOCs) could provide accurate diagnostic models for esophageal cancer. However, the complexity and high cost of GC–MS limit its applicability for large-scale population screening.</div><div>In this study, we propose a complementary, more clinically feasible approach: a portable diagnostic system based on a multimodal gas sensor array integrated with deep learning algorithms. Unlike GC–MS, this system requires no pre-concentration and allows for rapid, non-invasive, on-site breath analysis. We analyzed breath samples from 120 participants (68 patients and 52 healthy controls). After feature selection using Particle Swarm Optimization, a Residual Neural Network model achieved an accuracy of 83%, sensitivity of 86%, specificity of 79%, and an AUC of 0.91.</div><div>This study not only addresses the practical limitations of GC–MS but also highlights the potential of sensor-array-based strategies as a cost-effective and scalable tool for early esophageal cancer detection. Our approach represents a methodological advancement, surpassing previous VOC-based studies.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":391,"journal":{"name":"Microchemical Journal","volume":"223 ","pages":"Article 117340"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147386000","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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