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Updated: Aug 12, 2025
Development of an Electrochemical DNA Biosensor to Detect a Foodborne Pathogen
Published on: June 3, 2018
A microfluidic chip-based multivalent DNA walker amplification biosensor for the simultaneous detection of multiple
Zhenli Xu1, Jiaqi Wang1, Zhijian Jia2
1Key Laboratory of Advanced Mass Spectrometry and Molecular Analysis of Zhejiang Province, Institute of Mass Spectrometry, School of Material Science and Chemical Engineering, Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang province, 315211, China. wuyongxiang@nbu.edu.cn.
This study introduces a novel DNA walker sensor on a microfluidic chip for rapid, simultaneous detection of food-borne pathogens like Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Salmonella typhimurium, and Staphylococcus aureus. The sensor enhances sensitivity through double amplification, offering a promising tool for biosensing.
Area of Science:
- Biosensing
- Molecular diagnostics
- Microfluidics
Background:
- Sensitive detection of low-abundance targets is crucial for disease diagnosis and biomedical research.
- DNAzyme-driven DNA walkers offer high specificity and sensitivity for signal amplification.
- Detecting multiple food-borne pathogens simultaneously and rapidly remains a challenge.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a multivalent DNA walker sensor for simultaneous, rapid, and sensitive detection of Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Salmonella typhimurium, and Staphylococcus aureus.
- To enhance detection sensitivity using a microfluidic chip and a novel substrate strand design.
- To create a versatile biosensing platform for pathogen analysis.
Main Methods:
- Designed a substrate strand with three rA cleavage sites for multivalent DNA walker activity.
- Integrated the DNA walker sensor with microfluidic chip technology for simultaneous analysis.
- Employed gold stirring rod enrichment combined with DNA walker amplification for enhanced sensitivity.
Main Results:
- Achieved simultaneous, rapid, and sensitive detection of three target pathogens.
- Demonstrated low detection limits and wide detection ranges for the pathogens.
- Showcased a double amplification strategy through gold stirring rod enrichment and DNA walkers, significantly boosting sensitivity.
Conclusions:
- The developed sensor enables efficient and simultaneous detection of multiple food-borne pathogens.
- The sensor platform shows potential for broader applications by modifying substrate strand designs for different targets.
- This work presents a novel detection tool platform for advanced biosensing applications.
