Nanomaterial-mediated self-calibrating biosensors for ultra-precise detection of food hazards: Recent advances and new horizons

Food safety hazards pose a serious threat to human health and public safety. The development of rapid and accurate detection technologies for food hazards is, therefore, of paramount importance. Nanomaterial-based detection technology has solved the limitations of traditional detection methods, such as long detection time and high cost. However, most current biosensors still rely on single-signal outputs, which are susceptible to the influence of the food matrix, leading to errors in the detection signal and affecting the reliability of the results. To overcome these challenges, the development of biosensors with built-in self-calibration mechanisms holds great promise. Sensors with built-in self-calibration can make a sensing matrix output signals of different frequencies through different combinations of nanomaterials, and the reversibility or synergistic changes between these signals make the determination of the concentration of the target analyte closer to the real value. This innovative approach to ultra-precise trace detection of hazards in complex food matrices is a significant advancement in the field of food safety. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of the synthesis and application form of signal-labeled nanomaterials, and outlines the underlying principles and application scenarios of the ultra-precision detection platform for food hazards based on built-in self-calibration. Furthermore, this paper also discusses the limitations and the prospective outlook of sensors based on the internal self-calibration mode to stimulate strategic innovation of ultra-precision sensing modes, ultimately safeguarding food safety.