Korean researchers develop biosensor detecting cancer with a drop of blood

[Source: Institute for Basic Science]

South Korean researchers claim that they have developed a new diagnostic sensor that uses a drop of blood to detect cancer with great sensitivity and accuracy, which can be scaled out to broader point-of-care applications.

Korea¡¯s state-run Institute for Basic Science (IBS) revealed Wednesday its research team led by Cho Yoon-kyoung, Ph.D., a group leader in the Center for Soft and Living Matter, has developed a new biosensor based on a nanoporous gold electrode and successfully demonstrated its potential in the detection of prostate cancer.

The team¡¯s research finding was published in the online edition of Advanced Materials on Tuesday and was selected as the cover paper.

Point-of-care diagnosis is a fast and cost-effective method for disease detection, but it requires extremely sensitive techniques because biomarkers related to cancer or infectious diseases are only in very small amounts in blood. The sensor electrode¡¯s surface area can be enlarged for better sensitivity, but the risk of contamination increases together, hurting accuracy.

The research team developed a nanoporous gold electrode to tackle both problems at once, they claimed. The new biosensor allows physicians to diagnose prostate cancer at point-of-care without going through the complicated steps of isolating and purifying biomarkers at a lab.

This will pave the way for future technology development in point-of-care medicine, Cho said. The team aims to expand research to develop a diagnostic chip that analyzes blood and saliva samples.

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