Fascinating news…

Researchers from the University of Cambridge and the Medical Research Council are working on a create a biosensor which would be able to detect diseases in humans quickly and cheaply.

The device would be small and portable and would be able to detect cancer, as well as infectious viruses such as avian flu or even used to fight bioterrorism. Similar to a mobile phone, it could be used at a patient’s bedside as well as in the field.

The device would work on the principle that “peptide aptamers�, special types of proteins that can be coupled to Thin Film Transistors, can detect the presence of other proteins in a sample taken from a patient. Once the strands of DNA from the two types of protein interact with one one another, they create a unique electrical signal that can be analysed.

A user would place a sample on a small disposable card containing the TFTs. The card would then be inserted into the device, where the samples would be comibed with the peptide aptamers and the electrical signals analysed. The process would show whether a sample does or does not have tell-tale proteins which would suggest the patient has a disease.

Via The Engineer. Press release.