Biosensors-Basel最新文献

Microneedle array-based drug delivery offers a minimally invasive and safe approach for breaching the skin barrier, enabling localized and targeted treatment-an advantage particularly valuable in chronic condition management, such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA). RA presents a multifaceted pathophysiology, often necessitating long-term pharmacological management. However, conventional oral administration may lead to systemic drug distribution, increasing the likelihood of adverse effects, and ultimately undermining therapeutic efficacy. In this study, a hollow microneedle array was employed for effective delivery of Tofacitinib and the antioxidant N-acetylcysteine (NAC). A comprehensive evaluation was conducted across multiple levels, in which inflammation and cartilage degradation were assessed histologically using hematoxylin-eosin (H&E) and Safranin O-Fast Green staining. Radiologically, micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) was employed to visualize bone structure alterations. On the molecular level, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to quantify inflammatory cytokines and oxidative stress markers. Furthermore, differentially expressed genes and enriched signaling pathways were identified through transcriptomic profiling pre- and post-treatment. And the potential regulatory targets and mechanistic insights into the therapeutic response were elucidated through correlation analyses between gene expression profiles and pathological indicators. This study provides a mechanistic and computational basis for precision targeted therapy, validates the efficacy and safety of microneedle delivery in a rheumatoid arthritis (RA) model, and demonstrates its potential application in local drug delivery strategies.

It is well known that nitrite is widely used in industrial and agricultural sectors as a preservative, corrosion inhibitor, and intermediate in chemical synthesis; consequently, nitrite residues are often present in food, water, and the environment as a result of meat curing, fertilizer use, and wastewater discharge. Despite having several applications, nitrite exerts toxic effects on human beings and aquatic life. Therefore, the monitoring of nitrite is of particular significance to avoid negative impacts on human health, the environment, and aquatic life. Previously, the electrochemical method has been extensively used for the development of nitrite sensors using various advanced electrode materials. Additionally, zinc oxide (ZnO), cerium oxide (CeO₂), titanium dioxide (TiO₂), copper oxide (CuO), iron oxides, nickel oxide (NiO), polymers, MXenes, reduced graphene oxide (rGO), carbon nanotubes (CNTs), graphitic carbon nitride (gCN), metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), and other composites have been utilized as electrocatalysts for the fabrication of nitrite electrochemical sensors. This review article provides an overview of the construction of nitrite sensors using advanced electrode materials. The electrochemical activities of the reported nitrite sensors are discussed. Furthermore, limitations and future perspectives regarding the determination of nitrite are discussed.

There is an increasing demand to design user-friendly specific assays for the detection of analytes of interest for healthcare, environment, and agrifood. Modern biotechnology has approached this problem by using proteins, enzymes, or RNA/DNA fragments (aptamers) as biological recognition elements for biosensors/assays. The idea is to exploit the extremely wide range of selective affinities sculpted into the various proteins or aptamers by biological evolution. The number of compounds specifically recognized by different proteins and aptamers is very large and ranges from small molecules to macromolecules. The advantages of using proteins and aptamers as molecular recognition elements (MRE) for assays/biosensors are many, and involve relatively low costs in design and synthesis, water solubility, and finally high specificity. Many of the analytes of interest in the food control industry are relatively small. In this case, aptamers and antibodies are widely used as specific MREs in designing advanced biosensors. Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is the most frequently found aflatoxin in contaminated food samples, and is one of the most potent natural compounds in terms of genotoxicity and carcinogenicity. Aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) is the hydroxylated metabolite of AFB1 and is usually found in milk and milk products as a carry-over of AFB1 in animals that have ingested contaminated feed. AFM1 is also found in human milk, and has been shown to be hepatotoxic and carcinogenic. Here, we present recent advances in assays and biosensors based on the use of antibodies and aptamers as MREs that have been developed for monitoring the presence of AFM1 in milk and dairy products. The limitations and advantages of aptamer- and antibody-based assays/biosensors are discussed, as well as future research perspectives.

Whole-cell biosensors represent one of the tools used for assessing the effects of various agents on living cells. Here we have constructed and tested whole-cell lux-biosensors to detect membrane damage in both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria using the stress-inducible promoter of the pspA gene from Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis fused to the lux genes from Photorhabdus luminescens. These biosensors increase their luminescence in response to treatment with a number of known membrane-damaging compounds, such as ethanol, Triton X-100, polymyxin B, dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) and melittin. E. coli- and B. subtilis-based biosensors demonstrated differences in response to the action of the same membrane-damaging agent. Thus, ethanol and polymyxin B specifically induced the pspA promoter in both lux-biosensors, but the induction amplitude was higher in the E. coli. Triton X-100 and melittin specifically induced the pspA promoter exclusively in B. subtilis cells, while DMSO induced it only in E. coli cells. This indicates a difference in the stress response of the Psp system to membrane-damaging agents in E. coli and B. subtilis cells. Thus, we demonstrated the functionality and efficiency of the constructed lux-biosensors and, using them, showed that some of the tested compounds are able to specifically activate Psp stress response systems in case of membrane damage.

Tea, a worldwide prevalent beverage, is continually contaminated by pesticide residues and heavy metals, presenting considerable health concerns to consumers. Nonetheless, effective monitoring is limited by conventional detection techniques-such as gas chromatography (GC) and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS)-which, despite their high precision, necessitate intricate pretreatment, incur substantial operational expenses, and are inadequate for swift on-site analysis. Biosensors have emerged as a viable option, addressing this gap with their exceptional sensitivity, rapid response, and ease of operation.This review rigorously evaluates recent advancements in biosensing technologies for the detection of pesticide residues and heavy metals in tea, emphasizing the mechanisms, analytical performance, and practical applicability of prominent platforms such as fluorescence, surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), surface plasmon resonance (SPR), colorimetric, and electrochemical biosensors. Electrochemical and fluorescent biosensors provide the highest promise for portable, on-site use owing to their enhanced sensitivity, cost-effectiveness, and flexibility to intricate tea matrices. The paper further emphasizes upcoming techniques such multi-component detection, microfluidic integration, and AI-enhanced data processing. Biosensors provide significant potential to revolutionize tea safety monitoring, with future advancements dependent on the synergistic incorporation of sophisticated nanomaterials, intelligent microdevices, and real-time analytics across the whole "tea garden-to-cup" supply chain.

Cardiac troponin I (cTnI) is a critical biomarker for the diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction (AMI), but conventional detection methods are often time-consuming and require specialized laboratory equipment. To meet the need for rapid and feasible detection, there is an urgent demand for methods that are fast, specific, and easy to use. In this study, two aptamers (Tro4 and Tro6), which specifically bind to different epitopes of cTnI, were employed to construct a dual-aptamer sandwich system on a lateral flow assay (LFA) strip. The test strip can deliver results within 10 min and shows a detection limit of 11.70 ng·mL^-1. It also exhibited excellent stability after storage at room temperature for up to four months. The assay demonstrated high analytical accuracy, as evidenced by recovery rates from spiked serum samples ranging from 95.11% to 103.17%. These results suggest that the proposed aptamer-based LFA is highly suitable for rapid screening of cTnI, especially in point-of-care settings and resource-limited environments. From a diagnostic perspective, this method holds great promise for improving the timely detection and management of AMI and other myocardial injuries.

In recent years, the amount of mercury discharged by human activities has continued to increase. Most of the mercury in surface water settles into the sediment, where it can be directly or indirectly transformed into mercury ion (Hg²⁺) compounds (such as dimethylmercury) under the action of microorganisms. Hg²⁺ display high toxicity and bioaccumulation in food, such as fish and rice, and thus the contamination of mercury ion is a serious concern for human health. Practical Hg²⁺ detection methods are usually limited by the sensitivity and selectivity of the used methods, such as colorimetric determination and fluorescence biosensor based on the solution phase. Therefore, it is urgent to develop Hg²⁺ detection methods in the practical environment with high sensitivity and selectivity. DNA is low-cost, relatively stable, and has been used for different fields. In this study, DNA for Hg²⁺detection was absorbed on the surface of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) by using 1,5-diaminonaphthalene (DAN) based on field-effect transistor (FET) biosensors. The interaction between DNA and Hg²⁺ can be directly converted into electrical signals based on the SWNTs biosensors. The experimental results showed that the limit of detection (LOD) of Hg²⁺ without the phase-locked amplifier was about 42.6 pM. The function of the phase-locked amplifier is to achieve fast detection of the biosensor with strong anti-noise ability. Intriguingly, the sensitivity of the biosensor combined with a phase-locked amplifier to detect Hg²⁺ was further improved to be 5.14 pM compared with some current methods of biosensors. Furthermore, this biosensor has an excellent selectivity and practical detection in tap water, which demonstrates its high performance and low cost in practical application in Hg²⁺ detection. These results show this method for Hg²⁺ detection using SWNTs biosensors with a phase-locked amplifier is promising.

Nano-engineered sensor systems represent a paradigm shift in disease diagnostics, offering unprecedented capabilities for precision medicine. This review methodically evaluates these advanced platforms, consolidating recent advancements across four critical clinical domains: diabetes monitoring, cancer detection, infectious disease diagnostics and cardiac/genetic health. We demonstrate how the unique properties of nanomaterials, such as graphene, quantum dots and plasmonic nanoparticles, are being harnessed to achieve remarkable gains in analytical sensitivity, selectivity and real-time monitoring. Specific breakthroughs include graphene-based sensors attaining clinically significant limits for continuous glucose monitoring, quantum dot bioconjugates enabling ultrasensitive imaging of cancer biomarkers and surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) probes facilitating early tumor identification. Furthermore, nanosensors exhibit exceptional precision in detecting viral antigens and genetic mutations, underscoring their robust translational potential. Collectively, these developments signal a clear trajectory toward integrated, intelligent healthcare ecosystems. However, for these promising technologies to transition into accessible and cost-effective diagnostic solutions, persistent challenges in scalability, manufacturing reproducibility and long-term biocompatibility must be addressed through continued interdisciplinary innovation.

Microfluidics enables precise manipulation of scarce Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) samples while accelerating analysis and enhancing sensitivity. Device-level structures explain these gains: staggered herringbone and serpentine mixers overcome low-Reynolds-number constraints to shorten diffusion distances and reduce incubation time; flow-focusing or T-junction droplet generators create one-droplet-one-reaction compartments that suppress cross-talk and support high-throughput screening; "Christmas-tree" gradient generators deliver quantitative dosing landscapes for mechanism-aware assays; micropillar/weir arrays and nanostructured capture surfaces raise surface-to-volume ratios and probe density, improving capture efficiency and limits of detection; porous-membrane, perfused organ-on-a-chip architectures recreate apical-basolateral transport and physiological shear, enabling metabolism-aware pharmacology and predictive toxicology; wax-patterned paper microfluidics (µPADs) use capillary networks for instrument-free metering in field settings; and lab-on-a-disc radial channels/valves exploit centrifugal pumping for parallelised workflows. Framed by key performance indicators-sensitivity (LOD/LOQ), reliability/reproducibility, time-to-result, throughput, sample volume, and sustainability/cost-this review synthesises how such structures translate into value across TCM quality/safety control, toxicology, pharmacology, screening, and delivery. Emphasis on structure-function relationships clarifies where microfluidics most effectively closes gaps between chemical fingerprints and biological potency and indicates practical routes for standardisation and deployment.

A composite material of Mn oxide nanowires and ZIF-8 (Mn_xO_y NWs@ZIF-8-RD) with controllable sizes and morphologies (rhombic dodecahedron-shape) was successfully synthesized under mild reaction conditions. The systematic investigation into the effects of synthesis conditions of the material on their microstructure and crystalline morphology was conducted. The material function as "tandem enzymes", exhibiting multiple enzyme-like activities, such as peroxidase (POD)- and glutamate-oxidase (Glu OXD)-like activities. Kinetic studies reveal that the Mn_xO_y NWs@ZIF-8-RD has excellent enzyme-like catalytic activity, with high substrate affinity and a maximum reaction rate of (H₂O₂: 840.52 × 10^-8 M·S^-1). Mn_xO_y NWs@ZIF-8-RD shows remarkable enantioselectivity for Glu enantiomers based on its POD- and Glu OXD-like activities. By integrating theoretical and experimental approaches, the recognition mechanism was preliminarily elucidated. In short, this study offered valuable insights for developing sophisticated functional materials and provided methodological references for Glu enantiomer recognition and quantitative detection.