Development of Nanostructured Biosensors Toward Point-of Care Applications

Abstract

Biosensors are novel devices for offering fast, point of care results in healthcare and environmental fields compared to expensive, time-consuming laboratory instruments and techniques. Nanostructures have been shown improve the performance of biosensors. Nianqiang Wu’s research group explores biosensor signal transduction methods and sensor designs with nanostructure integration for detection of cancer biomarkers, heavy metals, and protein biomarkers. For example, plasmonic gold nanostructures, such as nanoarrays, nanostars and nanorods, have been demonstrated to amplify the surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) signal in biosensors because of their unique optical properties and highly tunable localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR). Fluorescence biosensors for resonant energy transfer have been explored using quantum dots, graphene oxide, and plasmonic nanostructures. The fundamental working principles and performance optimizations are extensively characterized and investigated in this group. Both fluorescence and SERS have been used in developing paper-based lateral flow and microfluidic, lab-on- chip biosensors for cancer biomarkers, heavy metals, and traumatic brain injury protein biomarkers.