Nanophotonics, and more specifically plasmonics, provides a rich toolbox for biomolecular sensing, since the engineered metasurfaces can enhance light–matter interactions to unprecedented levels. So far, biosensing associated with high-quality factor plasmonic resonances has almost exclusively relied on detection of spectral shifts and their associated intensity changes. However, the phase response of the plasmonic resonances have rarely been exploited, mainly because this requires a more sophisticated optical arrangement. Here we present a new phase-sensitive platform for high-throughput and label-free biosensing enhanced by plasmonics. It employs specifically designed Au nanohole arrays and a large field-of-view interferometric lens-free imaging reader operating in a collinear optical path configuration. This unique combination allows the detection of atomically thin (angstrom-level) topographical features over large areas, enabling simultaneous reading of thousands of microarray elements. As the plasmonic chips are fabricated using scalable techniques and the imaging reader is built with low-cost off-the-shelf consumer electronic and optical components, the proposed platform is ideal for point-of-care ultrasensitive biomarker detection from small sample volumes. Our research opens new horizons for on-site disease diagnostics and remote health monitoring.
Sepsis is a condition characterized by a severe stage of blood-infection often leading to tissue damage, organ failure and finally death. Fast diagnosis and identification of the sepsis stage (sepsis, severe sepsis or septic shock) is critical for the patient´s evolution and could help in defining the most adequate treatment in order to reduce its mortality. The combined detection of several biomarkers in a timely, specific and simultaneous way could ensure a more accurate diagnosis. We have designed a new optical pointof-care (POC) device based on a phase-sensitive interferometric biosensor with a label-free microarray configuration for potential high-throughput evaluation of specific sepsis biomarkers. The sensor chip, which relies on the use of metallic nanostructures, provides versatility in terms of biofunctionalization, allowing the efficient immobilization of different kind of receptors such as antibodies or oligonucleotides. We have focused on two structurally different types of biomarkers: proteins, including C-reactive protein (CRP) and Interleukin 6 (IL6) and miRNAs, using miRNA-16 as example. Limits of Detection (LoD) of 18 µg mL-1 , 88 µg mL-1 and 1 µM (6 µg mL-1) have been respectively obtained for CRP, IL6 and miRNA-16 in individual assays, with high accuracy and reproducibility. The multiplexing capabilities have also been assessed with the simultaneous analysis of both protein biomarkers.
Existing clinical methods for bacteria detection lack in speed, sensitivity and importantly in Point-of-Care (PoC) applicability. Thus, finding ways to push the sensitivity of clinical PoC biosensing technologies is crucial. Aiming that, we here report a portable PoC device based on Lens-free Interferometric Microscopy (LIM). The device employs high performance nanoplasmonics and custom bioprinted microarrays and is capable of direct label-free bacteria (E. coli) quantification. With only one-step sample handling we offer a sampletodata turnaround time of 40 minutes. Our technology features detection sensitivity of a single bacterial cell both in buffer and diluted blood plasma and is intrinsically limited by the number of cells present in the detection volume. When employed in a hospital setting, the device has enabled accurate categorization of sepsis patients (infectious SIRS) from control groups (healthy individuals and non-infectious SIRS patients) without false positives/negatives. User-friendly on-site bacterial clinical diagnosis can thus become a reality.
We present a novel method for the efficient generation of even, odd, and helical Mathieu-Gauss beams of arbitrary order and ellipticity by means of a phase-only spatial light modulator (SLM). Our method consists of displaying the phase of the desired beam in the SLM; the reconstructed field is obtained on-axis following a spatial filtering process with an annular aperture. The propagation invariance and topological properties of the generated beams are investigated numerically and experimentally.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.