Integrated Aptasensor Array for Sweat Drug Analysis

Abstract

Drug abuse is seriously endangering human health and jeopardizing society. There is an urgent need for rapid, sensitive, portable, and easy-to-operate methods for the daily detection of drugs in biological matrices. However, current drug detection methods based on chromatography, spectroscopy, immunosorbent assays, etc. are limited by the requirements of high logistical instruments and laboratory. Herein, we proposed a wearable electrochemical aptasensor with high sensitivity and specificity for the direct capture and rapid detection of multiple drugs in sweat. The single aptamer and dual aptamers with different base compositions were designed to compose the aptasensor array. Molecular docking simulations demonstrated different binding affinities between bioamines and aptamers. The developed aptasensor array is shown to be sufficient to generate distinct electrochemical fingerprints for different psychoactive drugs and interfering substances by extracting variable features from electrochemical signals. Sixteen analytes in the same concentration or gradient concentrations were identified with 100% accuracy. In addition, the wearable sensor platform was demonstrated to discriminate various drugs with similar chemical structures in artificial sweat and human sweat samples. The sensor array not only provided a new rapid method for the detection of drugs but also served as a reference for developing wearable sensors for onsite and daily testing of human biochemical information.

Recent Advancements in Physiological, Biochemical, and Multimodal Sensors Based on Flexible Substrates: Strategies, Technologies, and Integrations

“…Various analytes are capable of influencing each other during ion assays. K + , Na + , Ca 2+ , Mg 2+ , CO 3 2– , and Cl – can affect each other, and the way to eliminate the influence is to optimize the formulation of selective films, increase the content of specific ion carriers, or change the ratio of hydrophobic counterions. Now, it is possible to achieve a certain degree of specificity selection, but reaching human body precision still has a very long way to go .…”

Skin-Interfaced Wearable Sweat Sensors for Precision Medicine

“…Therefore, the distance between the redox molecule and the electrode surface decreases, leading to an increase in the electron transfer rate and redox peak current measured by SWV. A similar concept was implemented to construct an integrated aptasensor array for drugs . Two aptamer sequences (Apt1 and Apt2) which demonstrate different binding affinities to bioamine drugs were modified with a methylene blue signal reporter.…”

“…For instance, cortisol aptamers modified with a thiol end and a methylene-blue redox molecule on the opposite side were immobilized on gold electrodes for cortisol sensing (Figure 12b). 302 Upon binding, the aptamers undergo conformation changes by folding. Therefore, the distance between the redox molecule and the electrode surface decreases, leading to an increase in the electron transfer rate and redox peak current measured by SWV.…”

“…A similar concept was implemented to construct an integrated aptasensor array for drugs. 302 Two aptamer sequences (Apt1 and Apt2) which demonstrate different binding affinities to bioamine drugs were modified with a methylene blue signal reporter. Gold electrode sensor arrays were either modified with one or both aptamers (Apt1 or Apt2; Apt1 + Apt2).…”

A Soft Wearable Microfluidic Patch with Finger-Actuated Pumps and Valves for On-Demand, Longitudinal, and Multianalyte Sweat Sensing

“…While merging microfluidics and wearable sensors represents a major advancement in the field of noninvasive sweat sensing, major challenges still exist. The majority of chemical sensors, especially those relying on enzymes, aptamers, and antibodies, require specific incubation periods to obtain reliable results. , Acquiring sensor data before the incubation time is over leads to erratic results. Wearable sensors that perform continuous monitoring cannot control the time of sweat delivery to the sensor, as it depends on the person’s sweat rate.…”