Applications of Nanotechnology in Developing Biosensors for Food Safety

Abstract

Various biosensors have been developed to detect hazardous contaminations in foods, in order to get a fast and precise result. Typically, a biosensor is a device composed by a biorecognition element that specifically captures the target molecules from samples and a transducing element that transfers the interaction between the target molecule and the biorecognition element into a measurable signal which is proportional to the concentration of target molecules. Based on the types of transducers, biosensor can be grouped into optical, piezoelectric (mass-sensitive), thermal, and electrochemical sensors; based on the kinds of biorecognition elements, biosensors can be classified into nucleic acid/DNA sensors, immunosensors, enzyme-based sensors, and microbial sensors. Due to the recent improvements in nanotechnology, different nanoparticles (such as gold nanoparticles, liposomal nanovesicles, magnetic nanoparticles, and silica nanoparticles) have been applied in the development of biosensors, in order to enhance the assay sensitivity and working range. Choosing an optimal nanoparticle to enhance the performance of a sensor is a critical point in the development of biosensors. Therefore, this chapter firstly introduces various nanoparticles, including their properties, preparation methods, and different surface modification treatments and, furthermore, explains the applications of these nanoparticles on different types of biosensors with some examples specific to food safety.