Author(s): Oliveira, Daniela ; Correia, Bárbara P. ; Sharma, Sanjiv ; Moreira, Felismina T.C.
Date: 2023
Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.22/25462
Origin: Repositório Científico do Instituto Politécnico do Porto
Subject(s): Microneedles; Interstitial skin fluid; Electrochemistry; Biosensor
Biomarkers from interstitial skin fluid (ISF) complement conventional biofluids for point-of-care testing and real-time monitoring. In this study, we propose a new approach that combines microneedle technology with molecularly imprinted polymers to improve transdermal electrochemical sensing. The molecularly imprinted polymer, which acts like a plastic antibody, is easy to synthesis and scalable, offering a low detection limit and rapid measurement (20 minutes). It detects IL -6, a proinflammatory cytokine associated with several clinical conditions, including neurological disease and pneumonia caused by SARS-CoV-2. The transdermal sensors successfully identified IL -6 in simulated skin ISF at very low concentrations (1 pg/mL). This breakthrough enables affordable and bloodless testing, facilitating access to point-of-care testing worldwide. The integration of molecularly imprinted polymers and microneedle arrays is very promising for efficient transdermal electrochemical sensing that could find application in various clinical scenarios.
