This article explores the fascinating world of biosensors and their role in current and future medicine. With the constant advancement of science and technology, the field of healthcare has undergone a constant evolution that has improved people's quality of life. What was once considered magic is now an achievable reality thanks to science. |
FIRST OF ALL, WHAT IS A BIOSENSOR?
Medicine has evolved over the years, and with it have also evolved the sciences and tools that are studied and used to improve people's quality of life. What would health be without this constant evolution? What was once considered magic is now possible thanks to science.
As we explained in our previous article: "THE FUTURE OF MEDICINE: BIOSENSORS," we understand that biosensors, also known as biological sensors, are instruments that, through physicochemical processes, allow us to control specific biological variables. Although not always the case, they usually combine biological, physical, and chemical elements.
Biosensors work with immobilized biomolecules and transducers that detect or respond to particular interactions with chemical reagents. Obtaining accurate, selective, and reliable measurements in living cells and tissues is fascinating and crucial work for chemists, physicians, physiologists, and other health professionals, as it provides the opportunity to investigate metabolic processes and mechanisms from a bioclinical and physiological perspective.
This is why curiosity arises about the role of biosensors in health, so this article seeks to understand them through a more specific approach: how do biosensors contribute to the future of healthy living?
BIOSENSORS AND THEIR USE IN HEALTH OVER TIME
Biosensors, which are small electrochemical or electronic designs used to detect and measure biologically important substances, are therefore the most recent and promising scientific advances. Measurement selectivity is a matter of great importance and is generally achieved by particular chemical reactions.
In the 1960s, Clark and Lyons proposed the immobilization of an enzyme layer on electrical detectors, thus creating the first "enzyme electrode", which led to the creation of biosensors.
Because they allow for fast, direct, and reliable analysis, these biosensors are increasingly becoming substitutes for a wide range of analytical techniques.
In addition, they are increasingly used in medicine, the environment, and industry in general. And that is how the first artificial biosensors were developed in that decade, which detected glucose by combining immobilized enzymes with pH (acidity or alkalinity) or oxygen detectors. A key invention for the control of patients with diabetes.
Since then, several types of biosensors have been developed that are based on different mechanisms. For example, optoelectronic biosensors are based on optical response; electrochemical and enzymatic biosensors are based on chemical changes in the sensor; and biosensors that are based on mechanical changes, such as mechanoacoustics or piezoelectrics.
Currently, we can find those that react to nucleic acids (our genetics), antibodies (our immune system), and enzymes (reactions of our organs).
In our daily lives, biosensors are used to measure important biochemical substances to detect diseases, such as blood glucose levels for the diagnosis of diabetes; as mentioned above, the use of pregnancy tests, easily accessible at any pharmacy; and even reactive antigen tests, as we see in the detection tests for COVID-19 and certain sexually transmitted diseases.
The global biosensor market is estimated to have reached $16.8 billion in 2018 after reaching $8.5 billion in 2012. And these numbers keep growing. It is expected that by 2027, the market will reach 32 billion dollars. A revolution not only in health but also in the economy.
If stability issues didn't affect their lifetime, biosensors could be the perfect sensors. It is amazing that nature provides the most selective and versatile reagents in the form of enzymes, antibodies, and receptors.
Currently, commercial biosensors of various types can be found, including those for crucial substrates such as glucose, lactate, urea, and penicillin, among others. They contribute to our health by detecting and monitoring diseases, leveling our blood chemistry, and providing us with quality food and drugs.
WHERE DO WE FIND THEM AND HOW DO THEY WORK?
In medical practice, the use of tools that allow a physician to make a diagnosis is crucial. To investigate each pathology, one or more laboratory studies must be performed. These studies provide useful information that often helps in the diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of a patient.
We are all familiar with the everyday medical tools: thermometers, blood pressure monitors, glucometers, spirometers, and other instruments used by professionals to monitor our vital signs. We also know the different laboratory tests: urine and stool tests; hematology; hormone tests, among many others. All useful for the diagnosis of pathologies and recording the values of our internal chemistry.
But why wait for the disease? Wouldn't it be easier to prevent them? Wouldn't it be more comfortable to save us the visit to the health center? Due to the high cost of equipment, the need for qualified health personnel to carry out and interpret studies, and the time that is often required for their completion, the health system has needed to develop new, cheaper, and faster-to-use technologies.
Future studies will focus on biosensors that are fully reversible and regenerable, that can work in situ in complex samples, and that are biocompatible for in vivo operation. Today, biosensors are becoming cheaper, can accurately and continuously detect very low concentrations, and can be incorporated into a control system. The future of healthy living is within our reach today, but in what way? Today's medicine seeks to prevent and cure, but it is reactive. What if you could detect cancer long before you suspected it? What if you controlled your sugar levels without the need for punctures? All this sounds revolutionary, but it is closer to reality than we think. RIGHT NOW, WHAT APPLICATIONS DO WE FIND ON A DAILY BASIS? In biosensors, the substance or analyte to be analyzed physically or chemically interacts with a receptor connected to the transducer. This is responsible for identifying and collecting the physical or chemical changes that occur and then reproducing them in the form of an electrical signal. This is how biosensors are used as technology to control different processes in clinical chemistry. Today, smart watches and other smart accessories have experienced a significant boom. You no longer need to go to a medical center to find out how your heart beats, if your blood is properly oxygenated, or if your blood pressure is very high or low. These new accessories are not only useful but also comfortable. In addition, they are constant and can be controlled through applications. All this information is within reach of your mobile device.
What if your health personnel had access to this information? You would not need to go to a hospital to get a diagnosis. What's more, you wouldn't need to be sick to be able to receive treatment. Your sweat, your saliva, or the pH of your skin can be enough analytes to determine that something is wrong before you, your doctor, or a lab know it.
Health centers are often overwhelmed, and medical expenses are always high. The advancement of this technology not only benefits patients but also facilitates the work of health personnel and helps large institutions and government entities save on resources.
THE FUTURE OF BIOSENSORS IN HEALTH
It seems that the field of biosensors is experiencing steady growth and success. Excitement for novel biosensor-based interdisciplinary solutions has been reignited by the recent convergence of thinking around the rising cost of providing healthcare, the opportunities offered by mHealth, and the demand for more personalized medicine.
From glucose monitoring in the treatment of diabetic patients, laboratory chemical reagents for specific diseases and processes, determination of the risk of obesity in patients with risk factors, to even the control and detection of multiple types of cancer, biosensors are already part of the daily life of the health team. And they are at your fingertips!
They will no longer just be smart accessories. We will soon find clothing that reacts to your body temperature or detects electrolytes in your sweat, or internal chips that sense specific neurotransmitters or proteins to detect diseases of the nervous system or hereditary diseases.
It is clear that biosensors will be crucial in the future in clinical diagnosis, health management, and life science research, and we need to collaborate with engineers, doctors, and entrepreneurs to achieve significant advances and improve quality with every step of our lives.
About the author:
Verónica Lovera Rojas graduated as a medical doctor in 2022 with concentration in the areas of surgery and gynecology. She has spent the past 8 years working as a medical writer and researcher, writing technical articles on a wide variety of topics in the medical field. She is currently practicing at a hospital and working as a professional medical writer.
About the translator / editor:
Brian Hoy has over 20 years of experience in the medical device industry and business formation, supporting the full lifecycle with global scope. Brian consults for industry and provides general advisory and off-hours support.
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