The biosensing platform developed by Penn State engineering researchers incorporates two-pass laser induced graphene with industrial transistors to concurrently check for SARS-CoV-2 and vitamin C. Credit score: Heshmat “Amir” Asgharian / Penn State.
Within the COVID-19 pandemic period, at-home, moveable exams had been essential for understanding when to put on a masks or isolate at residence. Now, Penn State engineering researchers have developed a transportable and wi-fi gadget to concurrently detect SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, and vitamin C, a vital nutrient that helps bolster an infection resistance, by integrating industrial transistors with printed laser-induced graphene.
Their outcomes had been revealed as the duvet article of the November 2024 subject of ACS Utilized Supplies & Interfaces. By concurrently detecting the virus and vitamin C ranges, the check may assist people and their well being care suppliers resolve on simpler remedy choices, the researchers mentioned. For instance, somebody with low vitamin C ranges could profit from a supplemental enhance, whereas somebody with regular or excessive vitamin C ranges might have to contemplate different choices.
“There are several studies that show that vitamin C can help with managing the symptoms of viral respiratory infections like SARS-CoV-2,” mentioned corresponding creator Aida Ebrahimi, the Thomas and Sheila Roell Early Profession Affiliate Professor {of electrical} engineering, of biomedical engineering and of supplies science and engineering. “There are testing platforms for vitamin C, but they are bulky, expensive and not suitable for point-of-care, at home testing. Our device is portable, easy to operate and can detect vitamin C and SARS-CoV-2 simultaneously, with the option to add new target molecules to the same testing platform in the future.”
Researchers selected to check vitamin C and SARS-CoV-2 not just for their medical significance for sufferers, but additionally to reveal the flexibility of their testing strategy.
“We used vitamin C and SARS-CoV-2 as model targets to demonstrate the applicability of our approach for detecting biomarkers with the two common types of sensors used in the biosensors community: those with a capture element to ‘capture’ the target molecules, and those without one,” Ebrahimi mentioned. “We used the molecules to show our improvement in the test’s functionality compared to existing methods.”
After processing a small pattern of saliva, the gadget sends outcomes wirelessly to a person’s cellphone, Ebrahimi defined. Customers can then proceed to observe their vitamin C ranges at residence and take a complement or eat vitamin-rich meals to doubtlessly enhance their signs.
To develop their sensing platform, the researchers investigated a number of parameters of laser-induced graphene, which is an extremely skinny materials with excessive sensitivity and different fascinating properties. It’s fabricated by a extremely exact laser printing methodology to create the sensing materials, which has a 3 dimensional, porous construction. The group assessed its porosity, electrical properties and floor roughness to find out the most effective variety of “passes,” or layers, by which to print the sensors.
The variety of passes impacts the sensor’s sensitivity and restrict of detection, which refers back to the lowest focus of a substance that may be detected inside a sure confidence interval.
“We showed that with two laser printing passes, known as two-pass laser induced graphene, the sensor sensitivity and the limit of detection improve significantly for both vitamin C and SARS-CoV-2,” mentioned first creator Heshmat “Amir” Asgharian, a doctoral pupil in electrical engineering at Penn State.
Much like the small check strips that diabetes sufferers use for glucose monitoring, the one-time-use sensing gadget, which is made on a plastic substrate, is affordable and simple to fabricate, researchers mentioned, whereas the testing module is reusable.
Along with Ebrahimi and Asgharian, the co-authors embody Vinay Kammarchedu and Pouya Soltan Khamsi, electrical engineering doctoral college students at Penn State; and Caroline Brustoloni, who graduated with a grasp’s diploma from Penn State.
Extra data:
Heshmat Asgharian et al, Multi-Electrode Prolonged Gate Subject Impact Transistors Based mostly on Laser-Induced Graphene for the Detection of Vitamin C and SARS-CoV-2, ACS Utilized Supplies & Interfaces (2024). DOI: 10.1021/acsami.4c11393
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