Detecting cancer disease at an early stage is one of the most important issues for increasing the survival rate of patients. Cancer biomarker detection helps to provide a diagnosis before the disease becomes incurable in later stages. Biomarkers can also be used to evaluate the progression of therapies and surgery treatments. In recent years, molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) based sensors have been intensely investigated as promising analytical devices in several fields, including clinical analysis, offering desired portability, fast response, specificity, and low cost. The aim of this review is to provide readers with an overview on recent important achievements in MIP-based sensors coupled to various transducers (e.g., electrochemical, optical, and piezoelectric) for the determination of cancer biomarkers by selected publications from 2012 to 2016.
Complex fluids based on amphiphilic formulations are emerging, particularly in the field of conservation of works of art, as effective and safe liquid media for the removal of hydrophobic polymeric coatings. The comprehension of the cleaning mechanism is key to designing tailored fluids for this purpose. However, the interaction between nanostructured fluids and hydrophobic polymer films is still poorly understood. In this study, we show how the combination of confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) provides interesting and complementary insight into this process. We focused on the interaction between an ethyl methacrylate/methyl acrylate 70:30 copolymer film deposited onto a glass surface and a water/nonionic surfactant/2-butanone (MEK) ternary system, with MEK being a good solvent and water being a nonsolvent for the polymer. Our results indicate a synergy between the organic solvent and the surfactant assemblies: MEK rapidly swells the outer layers of the polymer film allowing for the subsequent diffusion of solvent molecules, while the amphiphile decreases the interfacial energy between the polymeric coating and the liquid phase, favoring dewetting and dispersion of swollen polymer droplets in the aqueous phase. The chemical nature of the surfactant and the microstructure of the assemblies determine both the kinetics and the overall efficiency of polymer removal, as assessed by comparing the behavior of similar formulations containing an anionic surfactant (sodium dodecyl sulfate, SDS).
In this work, we propose an electrochemical DNA aptasensor for the detection of profenofos, an organophosphorus pesticide, based on a competitive format and disposable graphite screen-printed electrodes (GSPEs). A thiol-tethered DNA capture probe, which results to be complementary to the chosen aptamer sequence, was immobilised on gold nanoparticles/polyaniline composite film-modified electrodes (AuNPs/PANI/GSPE). Different profenofos solutions containing a fixed amount of the biotinylated DNA aptamer were dropped onto the realized aptasensors. The hybridisation reaction was measured using a streptavidin-alkaline phosphatase enzyme conjugate, which catalyses the hydrolysis of 1-naphthyl -phosphate. The 1-naphtol enzymatic product was detected by means of differential pulse voltammetry (DPV). The aptasensor showed itself to work as a signal off sensor, according to the competitive format used. A dose response curve was obtained between 0.10 μM and 10 μM with a detection limit of 0.27 μM.
In this work, we report the development of a simple and sensitive sensor based on graphite screen-printed electrodes (GSPEs) modified by a nanocomposite film for dopamine (DA) detection. The sensor was realized by electrodepositing polyaniline (PANI) and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) onto the graphite working electrode. The sensor surface was fully characterized by means of the cyclic voltammetry (CV) technique using [Fe(CN)6]4−/3− and [Ru(NH3)6]2+/3+ as redox probes. The electrochemical behavior of the nanocomposite sensor towards DA oxidation was assessed by differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) in phosphate buffer saline at physiological pH. The sensor response was found to be linearly related to DA concentration in the range 1–100 μM DA, with a limit of detection of 0.86 μM. The performance of the sensor in terms of reproducibility and selectivity was also studied. Finally, the sensor was successfully applied for a preliminary DA determination in human serum samples.
Electrochemical biosensors focusing on a vast repertoire of analytes are now becoming one of the most widely explored scientific fields. This is due to their enormous potential in clinical diagnosis and biological process monitoring. In the near future, with the development of transducer technology, nano-sized material technology, and biomolecules engineering technology, biosensors should be powerful tools in several analytical areas.
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