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A special issue of Biosensors (ISSN 2079-6374). This special issue belongs to the section "Optical and Photonic Biosensors".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2023) | Viewed by 36253

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Arnaldo Leal-Junior

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Guest Editor

Graduate Program in Electrical Engineering, Federal University of Espirito Santo, Vitoria 29075-910, Brazil
Interests: optical fiber sensors; fiber Bragg gratings; polymer optical fibers; instrumented insoles; interferometers; movement analysis; actuators; robotic systems; IoT; data processing; machine learning algorithms
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Camilo A.R. Díaz

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Graduate Program in Electrical Engineering, Federal University of Espirito Santo, Vitoria 29075-910, Brazil
Interests: fiber Bragg gratings; fiber-optic biosensors; fiber-optic chemical sensors; in-fiber interferometers; Instrumentation; optical fiber sensors; POF-based sensors; rehabilitation robotics; structural health monitoring; surface Plasmon resonance
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Optical biosensors are analytical devices consisting of a biorecognition element integrated into an optical transducer system, which generates signals proportional to the concentration of the analyte and provides label-free or label-based and real-time detection. Designing, developing, and improving optical biosensors’ attributes is a challenging and important topic for several applications, such as healthcare and disease diagnosis, environmental monitoring, water and food quality monitoring, and drug delivery.

Optical biosensors integrate a biological element, such as an enzyme, antibody, aptamer, whole cell, and tissue, as a biorecognition element. In response to physical or chemical changes created by the biorecognition elements, the transduction process induces a change in the light beam, such as absorption, transmission, reflection, refraction, phase, amplitude, frequency, and/or light polarization. Depending on the application, the performance of optical biosensors can be optimized in selectivity, sensitivity, linearity, response time, reproducibility, and stability.

In this context, it is a pleasure to announce this Special Issue entitled “New Progress in Optical Fiber-Based Biosensors”, where original research and reviews of new fabrication processes, materials, transducing devices, and immobilization methods of optical biosensors are cordially invited. We hope that this Special Issue will further encourage and promote scientific contributions by researchers in the biosensors field.

This Special Issue welcomes contributions addressing, but not limited to:

Novel interrogation methods for biosensors;
Surface plasmon (SPR) and localized resonance (LSPR) for biosensing;
Biosensors for healthcare applications;
Biosensors for aquaculture and environment monitoring;
Wearable sensors, devices, and electronics;
Lab-on-a-chip;
Sensor devices, technology, and applications;
Advanced materials for sensing;
Nanophotonics.

Dr. Arnaldo Leal-Junior
Dr. Camilo A.R. Díaz
Guest Editors

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Biosensors is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

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Keywords

optical fiber biosensors
surface plasmon resonance (SPR)
localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR)
evanescent field
grating-based sensors
interferometer-based sensors
point-of-care sensors
nanophotonics
surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS)

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Published Papers (11 papers)

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Research

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15 pages, 4328 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Collision Enhanced Raman Scattering (CERS): An Ultra-High Efficient Raman Enhancement Technique for Hollow Core Photonic Crystal Fiber Based Raman Spectroscopy Gas Analyzer

by Maryam Shirmohammad, Michael A. Short and Haishan Zeng

Biosensors 2023, 13(11), 979; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios13110979 - 9 Nov 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1950

Abstract

Raman enhancement techniques are essential for gas analysis to increase the detection sensitivity of a Raman spectroscopy system. We have developed an efficient Raman enhancement technique called the collision-enhanced Raman scattering (CERS), where the active Raman gas as the analyte is mixed with a buffer gas inside the hollow-core photonic-crystal fiber (HCPCF) of a fiber-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (FERS) system. This results in an enhanced Raman signal from the analyte gas. In this study, we first showed that the intensity of the 587 cm⁻¹ stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) peak of H₂ confined in an HCPCF is enhanced by as much as five orders of magnitude by mixing with a buffer gas such as helium or N₂. Secondly, we showed that the magnitudes of Raman enhancement depend on the type of buffer gas, with helium being more efficient compared to N₂. This makes helium a favorable buffer gas for CERS. Thirdly, we applied CERS for Raman measurements of propene, a metabolically interesting volatile organic compound (VOC) with an association to lung cancer. CERS resulted in a substantial enhancement of propene Raman peaks. In conclusion, the CERS we developed is a simple and efficient Raman-enhancing mechanism for improving gas analysis. It has great potential for application in breath analysis for lung cancer detection. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Progress in Optical Fiber-Based Biosensors)

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12 pages, 3826 KiB

Open AccessCommunication

Localized Surface Plasmon Resonance-Based Nanosensor for Rapid Detection of Glyphosate in Food Samples

by Ariany Soares Côco, Fabiana Vasconcelos Campos, Camilo Arturo Rodríguez Díaz, Marco César Cunegundes Guimarães, Adilson Ribeiro Prado and Jairo Pinto de Oliveira

Biosensors 2023, 13(5), 512; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios13050512 - 30 Apr 2023

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2147

Abstract

In this study, we developed a biosensor based on the localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) phenomenon of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) to detect the widely used herbicide glyphosate in food samples. To do so, either cysteamine or a specific antibody for glyphosate were conjugated to the surface of the nanoparticles. AuNPs were synthesized using the sodium citrate reduction method and had their concentration determined via inductively plasma coupled mass spectrometry. Their optical properties were analyzed using UV-vis spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy. Functionalized AuNPs were further characterized via Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, Raman scattering, Zeta potential, and dynamic light scattering. Both conjugates succeeded in detecting the presence of glyphosate in the colloid, although nanoparticles functionalized with cysteamine tended to aggregate at high concentrations of the herbicide. On the other hand, AuNPs functionalized with anti-glyphosate functioned at a broad concentration range and successfully identified the presence of the herbicide in non-organic coffee samples and when it was added to an organic coffee sample. This study demonstrates the potential of AuNP-based biosensors to detect glyphosate in food samples. The low-cost and specificity of these biosensors make them a viable alternative to current methods for detecting glyphosate in foodstuffs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Progress in Optical Fiber-Based Biosensors)

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12 pages, 3465 KiB

Open AccessCommunication

Estradiol Detection for Aquaculture Exploiting Plasmonic Spoon-Shaped Biosensors

by Francesco Arcadio, Mimimorena Seggio, Luigi Zeni, Alessandra Maria Bossi and Nunzio Cennamo

Biosensors 2023, 13(4), 432; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios13040432 - 29 Mar 2023

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2152

Abstract

In this work, a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) biosensor based on a spoon-shaped waveguide combined with an estrogen receptor (ERα) was developed and characterized for the detection and the quantification of estradiol in real water samples. The fabrication process for realizing the SPR platform required a single step consisting of metal deposition on the surface of a polystyrene spoon-shaped waveguide featuring a built-in measuring cell. The biosensor was achieved by functionalizing the bowl sensitive surface with a specific estrogen receptor (ERα) that was able to bind the estradiol. In a first phase, the biosensor tests were performed in a phosphate buffer solution obtaining a limit of detection (LOD) equal to 0.1 pM. Then, in order to evaluate the biosensor’s response in different real matrices related to aquaculture, its performances were examined in seawater and freshwater. The experimental results support the possibility of using the ERα-based biosensor for the screening of estradiol in both matrices. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Progress in Optical Fiber-Based Biosensors)

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14 pages, 4054 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Optical Fiber Distributed Sensing Network for Thermal Mapping in Radiofrequency Ablation Neighboring a Blood Vessel

by Akbota Sametova, Sabit Kurmashev, Zhannat Ashikbayeva, Wilfried Blanc and Daniele Tosi

Biosensors 2022, 12(12), 1150; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios12121150 - 8 Dec 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1608

Abstract

Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is a minimally invasive form of thermotherapy with great potential in cancer care, having the capability of selectively ablating tumoral masses with a surface area of several cm². When performing RFA in the proximity of a blood vessel, the heating profile changes due to heat dissipation, perfusion, and impedance changes. In this work, we provide an experimental framework for the real-time evaluation of 2D thermal maps in RFA neighboring a blood vessel; the experimental setup is based on simultaneous scanning of multiple fibers in a distributed sensing network, achieving a spatial resolution of 2.5 × 4 mm² in situ. We also demonstrate an increase of ablating potential when injecting an agarose gel in the tissue. Experimental results show that the heat-sink effect contributes to a reduction of the ablated region around 30–60% on average; however, the use of agarose significantly mitigates this effect, enlarging the ablated area by a significant amount, and ablating an even larger surface (+15%) in the absence of blood vessels. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Progress in Optical Fiber-Based Biosensors)

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10 pages, 1598 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Heterogeneous Optical Fiber Sensor System for Temperature and Turbidity Assessment in Wide Range

by Arnaldo Leal-Junior, Guilherme Lopes, Leandro C. Macedo, Welton Duque, Anselmo Frizera and Carlos Marques

Biosensors 2022, 12(11), 1041; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios12111041 - 18 Nov 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2210

Abstract

This paper presents the development of an optical fiber sensor system for multiparametric assessment of temperature and turbidity in liquid samples. The sensors are based on the combination between fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs), intensity variation and surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensors. In this case, the intensity variation sensors are capable of detecting turbidity with a resolution of about 0.5 NTU in a limited range between 0.02 NTU and 100 NTU. As the turbidity increases, a saturation trend in the sensor is observed. In contrast, the SPR-based sensor is capable of detecting refractive index (RI) variation. However, RI measurements in the turbidity calibrated samples indicate a significant variation on the RI only when the turbidity is higher than 100 NTU. Thus, the SPR-based sensor is used as a complementary approach for the dynamic range increase of the turbidity assessment, where a linearity and sensitivity of 98.6% and 313.5 nm/RIU, respectively, are obtained. Finally, the FBG sensor is used in the temperature assessment, an assessment which is not only used for water quality assessment, but also in temperature cross-sensitivity mitigation of the SPR sensor. Furthermore, this approach also leads to the possibility of indirect assessment of turbidity through the differences in the heat transfer rates due to the turbidity increase. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Progress in Optical Fiber-Based Biosensors)

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19 pages, 4198 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Spatial-Division Multiplexing Approach for Simultaneous Detection of Fiber-Optic Ball Resonator Sensors: Applications for Refractometers and Biosensors

by Madina Shaimerdenova, Takhmina Ayupova, Aliya Bekmurzayeva, Marzhan Sypabekova, Zhannat Ashikbayeva and Daniele Tosi

Biosensors 2022, 12(11), 1007; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios12111007 - 11 Nov 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2041

Abstract

Fiber-optic ball resonators are an attractive technology for refractive index (RI) sensing and optical biosensing, as they have good sensitivity and allow for a rapid and repeatable manufacturing process. An important feature for modern biosensing devices is the multiplexing capacity, which allows for interrogating multiple sensors (potentially, with different functionalization methods) simultaneously, by a single analyzer. In this work, we report a multiplexing method for ball resonators, which is based on a spatial-division multiplexing approach. The method is validated on four ball resonator devices, experimentally evaluating both the cross-talk and the spectral shape influence of one sensor on another. We show that the multiplexing approach is highly efficient and that a sensing network with an arbitrary number of ball resonators can be designed with reasonable penalties for the sensing capabilities. Furthermore, we validate this concept in a four-sensor multiplexing configuration, for the simultaneous detection of two different cancer biomarkers across a widespread range of concentrations. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Progress in Optical Fiber-Based Biosensors)

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12 pages, 980 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Cadmium Ions’ Trace-Level Detection Using a Portable Fiber Optic—Surface Plasmon Resonance Sensor

by Bianca-Georgiana Şolomonea, Luiza-Izabela Jinga, Vlad-Andrei Antohe, Gabriel Socol and Iulia Antohe

Biosensors 2022, 12(8), 573; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios12080573 - 27 Jul 2022

Cited by 16 | Viewed by 3238

Abstract

Environmental pollution with cadmium (Cd) is a major concern worldwide, with prolonged exposure to this toxic heavy metal causing serious health problems, such as kidney damage, cancer, or cardiovascular diseases, only to mention a few. Herein, a gold-coated reflection-type fiber optic–-surface plasmon resonance (Au-coated FO-SPR) sensor is manufactured and functionalized with (i) bovine serum albumin (BSA), (ii) chitosan, and (iii) polyaniline (PANI), respectively, for the sensitive detection of cadmium ions (Cd

^{2 +}

) in water. Then, the three sensor functionalization strategies are evaluated and compared one at a time. Out of these strategies, the BSA-functionalized FO-SPR sensor is found to be highly sensitive, exhibiting a limit of detection (LOD) for Cd

^{2 +}

detection at nM level. Moreover, the presence of Cd

^{2 +}

on the FO-SPR sensor surface was confirmed by the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) technique and also quantified consecutively for all the above-mentioned functionalization strategies. Hence, the BSA-functionalized FO-SPR sensor is sensitive, provides a rapid detection time, and is cheap and portable, with potential applicability for monitoring trace-level amounts of Cd within environmental or potable water. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Progress in Optical Fiber-Based Biosensors)

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17 pages, 6645 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Soft and Skin-Interfaced Smart Patch Based on Fiber Optics for Cardiorespiratory Monitoring

by Daniela Lo Presti, Daniele Bianchi, Carlo Massaroni, Alessio Gizzi and Emiliano Schena

Biosensors 2022, 12(6), 363; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios12060363 - 26 May 2022

Cited by 36 | Viewed by 4141

Abstract

Wearables are valuable solutions for monitoring a variety of physiological parameters. Their application in cardiorespiratory monitoring may significantly impact global health problems and the economic burden related to cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. Here, we describe a soft biosensor capable of monitoring heart (HR) and respiratory (RR) rates simultaneously. We show that a skin-interfaced biosensor based on fiber optics (i.e., the smart patch) is capable of estimating HR and RR by detecting local ribcage strain caused by breathing and heart beating. The system addresses some of the main technical challenges that limit the wide-scale use of wearables, such as the simultaneous monitoring of HR and RR via single sensing modalities, their limited skin compliance, and low sensitivity. We demonstrate that the smart patch estimates HR and RR with high fidelity under different respiratory conditions and common daily body positions. We highlight the system potentiality of real-time cardiorespiratory monitoring in a broad range of home settings. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Progress in Optical Fiber-Based Biosensors)

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17 pages, 1791 KiB

Open AccessReview

Progress and Trends of Optical Microfiber-Based Biosensors

by Yasmin Mustapha Kamil, Muhammad Hafiz Abu Bakar, Nurul Hida Zainuddin, Mohd Hanif Yaacob and Mohd Adzir Mahdi

Biosensors 2023, 13(2), 270; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios13020270 - 14 Feb 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2136

Abstract

Biosensors are central to diagnostic and medicinal applications, especially in terms of monitoring, managing illness, and public health. Microfiber-based biosensors are known to be capable of measuring both the presence and behavior of biological molecules in a highly sensitive manner. In addition, the flexibility of microfiber in supporting a variety of sensing layer designs and the integration of nanomaterials with biorecognition molecules brings immense opportunity for specificity enhancement. This review paper aims to discuss and explore different microfiber configurations by highlighting their fundamental concepts, fabrication processes, and performance as biosensors. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Progress in Optical Fiber-Based Biosensors)

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38 pages, 17951 KiB

Open AccessReview

Optically Active Nanomaterials and Its Biosensing Applications—A Review

by Santosh Kumar, Zhi Wang, Wen Zhang, Xuecheng Liu, Muyang Li, Guoru Li, Bingyuan Zhang and Ragini Singh

Biosensors 2023, 13(1), 85; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios13010085 - 4 Jan 2023

Cited by 38 | Viewed by 6322

Abstract

This article discusses optically active nanomaterials and their optical biosensing applications. In addition to enhancing their sensitivity, these nanomaterials also increase their biocompatibility. For this reason, nanomaterials, particularly those based on their chemical compositions, such as carbon-based nanomaterials, inorganic-based nanomaterials, organic-based nanomaterials, and composite-based nanomaterials for biosensing applications are investigated thoroughly. These nanomaterials are used extensively in the field of fiber optic biosensing to improve response time, detection limit, and nature of specificity. Consequently, this article describes contemporary and application-based research that will be of great use to researchers in the nanomaterial-based optical sensing field. The difficulties encountered during the synthesis, characterization, and application of nanomaterials are also enumerated, and their future prospects are outlined for the reader’s benefit. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Progress in Optical Fiber-Based Biosensors)

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25 pages, 3671 KiB

Open AccessReview

Semiconductor Multimaterial Optical Fibers for Biomedical Applications

by Lingyu Shen, Chuanxin Teng, Zhuo Wang, Hongyi Bai, Santosh Kumar and Rui Min

Biosensors 2022, 12(10), 882; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios12100882 - 17 Oct 2022

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 5316

Abstract

Integrated sensors and transmitters of a wide variety of human physiological indicators have recently emerged in the form of multimaterial optical fibers. The methods utilized in the manufacture of optical fibers facilitate the use of a wide range of functional elements in microscale optical fibers with an extensive variety of structures. This article presents an overview and review of semiconductor multimaterial optical fibers, their fabrication and postprocessing techniques, different geometries, and integration in devices that can be further utilized in biomedical applications. Semiconductor optical fiber sensors and fiber lasers for body temperature regulation, in vivo detection, volatile organic compound detection, and medical surgery will be discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Progress in Optical Fiber-Based Biosensors)

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