Biosensor Platforms for Rapid Detection of <i>E. coli</i> Bacteria

Risks of contamination with the well-known food pathogen Escherichia coli are increasing over the years. Therefore, rapid and portable technologies using different types of advanced devices named biosensors with various transduction capabilities (electrochemical, optical, or acoustic) were developed and seem to offer the most elegant solutions for research communities and final users-humans. Thus, integration of microfluidic biochips/biosensors into smartphones offer the real-time detection of any infection with E. coli, helping doctors in proceeding immediately with the clinical treatment. The present chapter will discuss about the analytical performances of biosensors and microfluidics such as selection of substrates, type of (bio)functionalization, low limit of detection, specificity, and response time for monitoring different E. coli strains. Thus, it is possible to rapidly identify (30–90 s) very low concentrations of E. coli (101 CFU/mL) down to a single bacterium in real samples (water, urine, milk, beef-meat) by simple integration of an angle scatter method and microfluidic-cellulosic pads (μPAD) loaded with micro-/nanoparticles functionalized with either polyclonal anti E. coli antibodies or with DNA strains into a portable device—a smartphone. Such biosensor configuration can also be used for the detection of other types of microorganisms with potential human and animal health concerns

Development of localized surface plasmon resonance biosensors for the detection of Brettanomyces bruxellensis in wine

Incident light interacting with noble-metal nanoparticles with smaller sizes than the wavelength of the incident light induces localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR). In this work a gold nanostructured surface was used for the immobilization of a 5\u2032 end Thiol modified DNA probe to develop a LSPR nanobiosensor for the detection of the spoiler wine yeast Brettanomyces bruxellensis. Gold was evaporated to obtain a gold thickness of 4 nm. DNA (2 \u3bcL) from the target microorganism and the negative control at various concentrations were used to test the specificity and sensitivity of the LSPR technique. Changes in the optical properties of the nanoparticles due to DNA-probe binding are reflected in the shift of LSPR extinction maximum (\u3bbmax). The results obtained using as target microorganism B. bruxellensis, and as negative control Saccharomyces cerevisiae demonstrated the specificity of both the DNA-probe and the protocol. The LSPR spectrophotometry technique detects 0.1 ng/\u3bcL DNA target confirming the possibility to utilize this system for the detection of pathogen microorganisms present in low amount in food and beverage samples. \ua9 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Development of EIS cell chips and their application for cell analysis

International audience; We report the development of EIS cell chips able to monitor cell growth and adhesion. They are made of transparent or semitransparent materials to allow complementary analysis of cell behaviour during the measurements through optical microscopy. Our approach is cheap both in fabrication and usage, it is not invasive for cells and it does not require any additional reagent. Our devices are particular suitable to count cells or to evaluate cell morphology and changes as a consequence of different treatments

Robust SERS Platforms Based on Annealed Gold Nanostructures Formed on Ultrafine Glass Substrates for Various (Bio)Applications

In this study, stable gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) are fabricated for the first time on commercial ultrafine and nonconductive glass coverslips coated with gold thin layers (2 nm, 4 nm, 6 nm, and 8 nm) at 25 \ub0C and annealed at high temperatures (350 \ub0C, 450 \ub0C, and 550 \ub0C) on a hot plate for different periods of time. Such gold nanostructured coverslips were systematically tested via surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) to identify their spectral performances in the presence of different concentrations of a model molecule, namely 1,2-bis-(4-pyridyl)-ethene (BPE). By using these SERS platforms, it is possible to detect BPE traces (10 1212 M) in aqueous solutions in 2 min (120 s)

The analyse of the antioxidant effect of natural peloidotherapy in aging process

Medical research has developed remarkably in recent years, including the involvement of the glutathione peroxidase (GPx) family of enzymes in the course of human aging, with numerous clinical studies published in the literature reporting this particular fact. Thus, mud therapy and its effect on biological aging have been represented in papers that have been published to date. Papers published in the literature analyzing GPx vari-ation during sapropelic mud therapy suggest the beneficial effect of this family of en-zymes in diseases with an important inflammatory component, mainly monitored in patients with osteoarthritis. This study investigated the effects of sapropelic mud treat-ment on GPx values in patients receiving treatment with sapropelic mud at the Balneal and Rehabilitation Sanatorium of Techirghiol, Romania. We included 52 patients, split into two groups, who received treatment with cold mud baths and warm mud baths. Values close to statistical significance were found in patients who received treatment with cold mud baths in terms of mean GPx values at the four-time points studied. Fur-ther studies evaluating GPx in patients receiving sapropelic mud treatment are needed

Progressive skin fibrosis is associated with a decline in lung function and worse survival in patients with diffuse cutaneous systemic sclerosis in the European Scleroderma Trials and Research (EUSTAR) cohort.

Objectives To determine whether progressive skin fibrosis is associated with visceral organ progression and mortality during follow-up in patients with diffuse cutaneous systemic sclerosis (dcSSc). Methods We evaluated patients from the European Scleroderma Trials and Research database with dcSSc, baseline modified Rodnan skin score (mRSS) ≥7, valid mRSS at 12±3 months after baseline and ≥1 annual follow-up visit. Progressive skin fibrosis was defined as an increase in mRSS &gt;5 and ≥25% from baseline to 12±3 months. Outcomes were pulmonary, cardiovascular and renal progression, and all-cause death. Associations between skin progression and outcomes were evaluated by Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and multivariable Cox regression. Results Of 1021 included patients, 78 (7.6%) had progressive skin fibrosis (skin progressors). Median follow-up was 3.4 years. Survival analyses indicated that skin progressors had a significantly higher probability of FVC decline ≥10% (53.6% vs 34.4%; p&lt;0.001) and all-cause death (15.4% vs 7.3%; p=0.003) than non-progressors. These significant associations were also found in subgroup analyses of patients with either low baseline mRSS (≤22/51) or short disease duration (≤15 months). In multivariable analyses, skin progression within 1 year was independently associated with FVC decline ≥10% (HR 1.79, 95% CI 1.20 to 2.65) and all-cause death (HR 2.58, 95% CI 1.31 to 5.09). Conclusions Progressive skin fibrosis within 1 year is associated with decline in lung function and worse survival in dcSSc during follow-up. These results confirm mRSS as a surrogate marker in dcSSc, which will be helpful for cohort enrichment in future trials and risk stratification in clinical practice

Micro- and nano-biosensors for environmental applications

International audienc

Toxicity and biosensing of environmental pollutants

International audienc

Biosensors for the detection of water pollutants

International audienc

Acoustic and plasmonic biosensors for environmental purposes

International audienc