Robust Detection of Cancer Markers in Human Serums Using All-Dielectric Metasurface Biosensors

Area of Science:

• Nanotechnology
• Biomedical Engineering
• Materials Science

Background:

• Biosensors require robustness against interfering molecules in biological samples like blood, plasma, and serum.
• All-dielectric metasurface biosensors offer high fluorescence enhancement for sensitive detection.
• Previous studies lacked systematic demonstrations of metasurface biosensor robustness in complex biological matrices.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the robustness of all-dielectric metasurface biosensors using silicon nanopellets and microfluidic chips.
• To assess the performance of these biosensors in detecting cancer biomarkers in human serum.
• To demonstrate the suitability of metasurface biosensors for clinical diagnostic applications.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of all-dielectric metasurface biosensors comprising silicon nanopellet arrays and microfluidic chips.
• Experimental validation of biosensor performance using varying concentrations of target analytes.
• Testing biosensor robustness by analyzing human serum samples spiked with cancer markers.

Main Results:

• Metasurface biosensors exhibited high detection performance for various targets, including nucleic acids, antigens, and antibodies.
• Demonstrated wide dynamic ranges: 0.16 ng/mL to 1 μg/mL for prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and 2 pg/mL to 25 ng/mL for carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA).
• Confirmed robustness in detecting PSA and CEA in human serum across concentrations relevant to clinical diagnosis.

Conclusions:

• All-dielectric metasurface biosensors show significant robustness, a critical characteristic for clinical applications.
• The demonstrated dynamic ranges and robustness support the use of these biosensors for reliable cancer biomarker detection in serum.
• This study provides a systematic validation of metasurface biosensor performance in complex biological samples.