A Programmable Microfluidic Paper-Based Analytical Device for Simultaneous Colorimetric and Photothermal Visual...

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Analytical Chemistry
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Simultaneous detection of multiple enzyme activities is crucial for clinical diagnosis and home care.
• Existing methods are often costly, complex, and require large instruments, limiting point-of-care applications.
• There is a need for rapid, accurate, and portable solutions for on-site enzyme activity monitoring.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a smartphone-assisted microfluidic paper-based analytical device (μPAD) for simultaneous enzyme detection.
• To enable visual quantitative detection of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) using colorimetric and photothermal signals.
• To provide a cost-effective, portable, and user-friendly alternative to traditional diagnostic methods.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a smartphone-assisted programmable μPAD for simultaneous detection.
• Employed cobalt-doped mesoporous cerium oxide (Co-m-CeO₂) with peroxidase-like activity.
• Implemented a two-step bioenzyme-nanozyme cascade reaction involving H₂O₂, TMB, ALP, and BChE detection.

Main Results:

• Achieved simultaneous, accurate, and visual quantitative detection of ALP and BChE.
• Demonstrated significantly lower detection limits for both enzymes compared to existing paper-based methods, particularly for BChE.
• Validated the platform's practicability and efficiency using clinical serum samples.

Conclusions:

• The developed smartphone-assisted μPAD offers a facile and robust approach for multi-enzyme activity detection.
• This innovative platform shows great potential for on-site visual quantitative analysis in authentic samples.
• The technology advances portable diagnostics, enabling improved accessibility for clinical and home-care settings.