Mir Aamid Ahbab, Shirlinn Tan

Nick Bramanti, Wenrui Wu

EE 450X
Prof. Meng Lu
May 5th, 2017
Nanoparticles and Their Use in Biosensors

When looking at the topic of nanoparticles, it is useful to begin with a definition to

guide the work, and some understanding of the history of the topic. Then, a modern

application of nanoparticle biosensors will be looked at in depth to understand how

biosensors are solving problems in the modern era.

A nanoparticle is any small, localized object that can be assigned physical

properties like volume and mass, and is on the scale of nanometers in size. The

nanoparticle has been in use since 1962, when the first glucose sensor was created.

Even today, the glucose sensor is being used as a model for current nanoparticle

biosensors. This is also a quickly growing field, with an annual growth of 5.4% and a

predicted market near $100 million by 2020. With the field growing so quickly, there is

an opportunity to apply these biosensors in various areas. These include medicine

delivery, DNA sequencing, and the detection of harmful biological agents.

In todays market, the most commonly seen nanoparticles are either gold, silver,

copper, or silicon. There has also been a good amount of research into new

nanoparticles, with particular growth in carbon-based materials like graphite, graphene

and carbon nanotubes. Researchers continue to work on finding new nanoparticles that

are less toxic and oxidize at lower rates. Finding nanoparticles that meet these

requirements is part of the overall goal in the nanoparticle field of finding nanoparticles

that use their intrinsic properties to better suit biosensors; this would include traits like

physical absorption and reactionary bonding.

 Now, that a quick view of the current state of nanoparticle research has been

looked at, a specific application will be described and analyzed to better understand the

future of this technology. Rapid detection of pathogenic bacteria is a highly important

field of study, as it has ties to public health, biodefense, as well as food and water

safety. In recent years, there has been several large scale E. Coli breakouts, causing

an average of 3,200 hospitalizations and 31 deaths a year according to the CDC. Using

current methods of detection, E. Coli can be identified in two to four days. Researchers

at the University Complutense of Madrid figured that this time could be greatly improved

and set out to create a more rapid method of detecting the bacteria.

The research team decided to use nanoparticles in their solution as they allow for

an increased sensitivity. This increase is seen due to an increase in the capture

efficiency of the target molecules, as well as by utilizing the nanoparticles properties to

amplify the signal. In their design, three different types of nanoparticles were used.

Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) separated the targets for detection, and then gold

(AuNPs) and polymeric nanoparticles were used for signal amplification. By looking at

appendices C and D, it can be seen how the choices for the AuNP was made over other

nanoparticles.

The process is a fairly simple one, with few materials needed and relatively

simple steps to follow in the procedure. First, MNPs are placed into the solution being

tested, and the E. Coli cells are then magnetically captured, looking at appendix B

shows how the E. Coli is captured. The antibody is attached to the MNP via

electrostatic interactions of the positively-charged polyaniline and the negatively

charged antibody, which then captures the E. Coli cell. After the capture step, the cells
are then labeled with the gold nanoparticles. A magnet is then used to separate the

target cells from the sample, which are then placed onto a carbon electrode. The

carbon electrode is attached to a potentiostat and allows for electrochemical

measurements of the target cells, allowing for measurements to be done on the

targeted cells. Appendix A gives a graphical representation of the process.

The biosensor that was created was able to rapidly and efficiently detect E. Coli,

completing the job in approximately 45 minutes. This is a fraction of the original time,

and a large improvement in detecting hazardous bioagents. This same biosensor could

be modified and changed to better fit varying applications. This research also lends

itself to many possible future technologies including magnetic nanoparticles, and more

resilient nanoparticles.

Biosensors are a fairly recent field, having been first used just over a half century

ago. There is obviously a long ways to go, and many areas for improvement. Two of

the greatest areas of improvement are in the sensitivity and efficiency of these

biosensors, especially when it comes to growing the linear region of sensor outputs.
Appendix

A.

B.

C.
D.