研究人员发明危险重金属快速检测芯片

UC researchers have developed the first lab-on-a-chip sensor¹ to provide fast feedback regarding levels of the heavy metal manganese in humans. The sensor is both environmentally and child friendly, and will first be field tested in Marietta, Ohio, where a UC researcher is leading a long-term health study on the potential health effects of heavy metals. Work by University of Cincinnati researchers to create a sensor that provides fast feedback related to the presence and levels of heavy metals – specifically manganese – in humans is published in the August issue of the prestigious² international journal, Biomedical Microdevices. #

Described in the article is the development of a low-cost, disposable lab-on-a-chip sensor that detects highly electronegative（带负电的） heavy metals more quickly than current technology generally available in health-care settings. It's envisioned that the new UC sensor technology will be used in point-of-care devices that provide needed feedback on heavy-metal levels within about ten minutes. #

It's expected that the sensor will have potential for large-scale use in clinical, occupational and research settings, e.g., for nutrition testing in children. #

The new sensor is environmentally friendly in that its working electrode is made of bismuth（铋） vs. the more typical mercury, and it's child friendly in that it requires only a droplet³ or two of blood for testing vs. the typical five-milliliter sample now required.

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Explained one of the researchers, UC's Ian Papautsky, "The conventional methods for measuring manganese levels in blood currently requires about five milliliters of whole blood sent to a lab, with results back in 48 hours. For a clinician monitoring health effects by measuring these levels in a patient's blood – where a small level of manganese（锰） is normal and necessary for metabolic⁴ functions – you want an answer much more quickly about exposure levels, especially in a rural, high-risk area where access to a certified⁵ metals lab is limited. Our sensor will only require about two droplets⁶ of blood serum⁷ and will provide results in about ten minutes. It's portable and usable anywhere."

Papautsky, UC associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, is co-author of the Biomedical Devices-published research, "Lab-on-a-Chip Sensor for Detection of Highly Electronegative Heavy Metals by Anodic Stripping Voltammetry." Other co-authors are Erin Haynes, assistant professor of environmental engineering; William Heineman, distinguished⁸ research professor of chemistry; and just-graduated electrical and computer engineering doctoral student Preetha Jothimuthu, just-graduated chemistry doctoral student Robert Wilson, and biomedical engineering undergraduate research co-op student Josi Herren.#p#分页标题#e# #