title: Paper-based biodetection using luminescent nanoparticles.
abstract: Point-of-care and in-field technologies for rapid, sensitive and selective detection of molecular biomarkers have attracted much interest. Rugged bioassay technology capable of fast detection of markers for pathogens and genetic diseases would in particular impact the quality of health care in the developing world, but would also make possible more extensive screening in developed countries to tackle problems such as those associated with water and food quality, and tracking of infectious organisms in hospitals and clinics. Literature trends indicate an increasing interest in the use of nanomaterials, and in particular luminescent nanoparticles, for assay development. These materials may offer attributes for development of assays and sensors that could achieve improvements in analytical figures of merit, and provide practical advantages in sensitivity and stability. There is opportunity for cost-efficiency and technical simplicity by implementation of luminescent nanomaterials as the basis for transduction technology, when combined with the use of paper substrates, and the ubiquitous availability of cell phone cameras and associated infrastructure for optical detection and transmission of results. Luminescent nanoparticles have been described for a broad range of bioanalytical targets including small molecules, oligonucleotides, peptides, proteins, saccharides and whole cells (e.g., cancer diagnostics). The luminescent nanomaterials that are described herein for paper-based bioassays include metal nanoparticles, quantum dots and lanthanide-doped nanocrystals. These nanomaterials often have broad and strong absorption and narrow emission bands that improve opportunity for multiplexed analysis, and can be designed to provide emission at wavelengths that are efficiently processed by conventional digital cameras. Luminescent nanoparticles can be embedded in paper substrates that are designed to direct fluid flow, and the resulting combination of technologies can offer competitive analytical performance at relatively low cost.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Flexible Electronics (KLOFE) & Institute of Advanced Materials (IAM), Jiangsu National Synergistic Innovation Center for Advanced Materials (SICAM), Nanjing Tech University (NanjingTech), 30 South Puzhu Road, Nanjing 211816, P.R. China. iamqju@njtech.edu.cn and Chemical Sensors Group, Department of Chemical and Physical Sciences, University of Toronto Mississauga, 3359 Mississauga Road, ON, Canada L5L 1C6. ulrich.krull@utoronto.ca.
authors.forename: Qiang
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Ju
authors.affiliation: Chemical Sensors Group, Department of Chemical and Physical Sciences, University of Toronto Mississauga, 3359 Mississauga Road, ON, Canada L5L 1C6. ulrich.krull@utoronto.ca.
authors.forename: M Omair
authors.initials: MO
authors.lastname: Noor
authors.affiliation: Chemical Sensors Group, Department of Chemical and Physical Sciences, University of Toronto Mississauga, 3359 Mississauga Road, ON, Canada L5L 1C6. ulrich.krull@utoronto.ca.
authors.forename: Ulrich J
authors.initials: UJ
authors.lastname: Krull
mesh_terms: D001681:Biological Assay; D028581:Lanthanoid Series Elements; D049449:Luminescence; D053768:Metal Nanoparticles; D049329:Nanostructures; D010209:Paper; D045663:Quantum Dots
chemical_list: D028581:Lanthanoid Series Elements