"Research on the development of biosensors for the determination of nickel ions from food raw materials and food"

About Project 

Title: "Research on the development of biosensors for the determination of nickel ions from food raw materials and food"

Acronim: SenzNi

Contract no. PD 17 din 05/08/2020

P1 - Dezvoltarea sistemului național de CD 

Subprogramul 1.1 – Resurse Umane, Proiecte de Cercetare Postdoctorală 

PLANUL NAŢIONAL DE CERCETARE, DEZVOLTARE ŞI INOVARE 2015-2020, PNIII 

Project duration: 24 months

Project value: 246.950,00 LEI

RESEARCH TEAM


Lecturer dr. eng.  Liliana ANCHIDIN-NOROCEL - Project Manager 

Prof. dr. eng. Sonia AMARIEI - Mentor


Brief presentation of the results obtained

The research from this postdoctoral project led to the obtaining of biosensors for the determination of nickel ions in food. The importance of determining the concentration of nickel ions in food raw materials and foods is represented by their toxicity on the health of the population, and especially by the occurrence of allergies. Several versions of biosensors have been developed to reach an optimized version, also presented in the patent application that claims the concentration of the biologically active receptor and the immobilization agent, aspects that are the basis of the device's operation. The results of the project were realized by publishing 5 articles, sending 2 others for evaluation, participating in 6 international conferences, and sending a patent application to OSIM. Through these disseminated results, electrode manufacturers as well as those who deal with electronics will have access to the developed methods, so that they can make these biosensors available to people with hypersensitivity to nickel ions to consume food at the level of preventing the occurrence of allergies.

Prezentarea succinta a rezultatelor obtinute

Cercetarile din acest proiect postdoctoral au dus la obtinerea unor biosenzori pentru determinarea ionilor de nichel din alimente. Importanța determinării concentrației ionilor de nichel în materiile prime alimentare și alimente este reprezentată de toxicitatea acestora asupra sănătății populației, si in special de aparitia alergiilor.  S-au dezvoltat mai multe variante de biosenzori pentru a se ajunge la o varianta optimizata, prezentata si in cererea de brevet care revendica concentratia receptorului biologic activ si a agentului de imobilizare, aspecte care stau la baza functionarii dispozitivului. Rezultatele obtinute ale proiectului s-au concretizat prin publicarea a 5 articole, trimiterea altor 2 catre evaluare, participarea la 6 conferinte internationale si trimiterea unei cereri de brevet catre OSIM. Prin aceste rezultate diseminate, producătorii de electrozi dar şi cei care se ocupă de electronică vor avea acces la metodele dezvoltate, astfel încât să poată pune aceşti biosenzori la dispoziţia persoanelor cu hipersensibilitate la ionii de nichel pentru a consuma alimente la nivelul de prevenire a apariţiei alergiilor.


Abstract 

The research topic addressed in this project is the development of (bio)sensors for the quantification of nickel ions in food raw materials and foods. Nickel ions cause allergies and are found in foods such as: cocoa, chocolate, marzipan, beans, buckwheat, nuts, almonds, peanuts, spinach, wheat, brown rice, sunflower seeds, soybeans, cabbage, pineapple, raspberries, crustaceans, salmon, etc. It seems that about 15% of the human population suffers from nickel allergy. In addition to digestive manifestations, food intolerance to nickel may also have systemic manifestations, such as: diffuse dermatitis, diffuse itching, fever, rhinitis, headache, altered general condition. Increased toxicity can lead to blockage of liver function with the installation of liver coma. Nowadays, most existing methods used for heavy metals trace analysis include spectrophotometric (AAS, ICP/MS, ICP/AES), voltammetric and chromatographic methods, which can detect analytes at very low concentrations. However, all these classic techniques are generally costly and laborious, so it is necessary to develop new methods that eliminate these disadvantages. Therefore, developing a fast, not expensive and in situ method of determining nickel ions in the case of allergies is extremely important, as it could prevent them and would be very useful for the health of the human population. Once developed with the aid of this project and tested on real samples of food raw materials and foods, this (bio)sensor will also be characterized in terms of analytical performance characteristics. The results will be published either in a journal indexed in International Databases or submitted as a patent proposal to OSIM, as well as presented to international conferences. 

Project objectives:

- The development of a (bio)sensor for the determination of nickel ions in food raw materials and foods, by establishing the type of (bio)sensor, identifying the specific biological receptor for analyte of interest and selecting the method of immobilization;

 - Testing of the (bio)sensor prototype for the quantitative analysis of nickel in food raw materials and foods;

 - Comparison of the results obtained from the tested (bio)sensors with the results obtained by a reference method;

 - Advanced (bio)sensors characterization by analysis of analytical performance parameters and analysis of the electrode surface in the (bio)sensor system, after its use on food raw materials and foods samples.

Estimated results of the project

The expected results for achieving the objectives, after optimizing the concentrations of the biological receptors and the immobilization solution, include:

The obtained results of the project

The obtained results of the project are:

Dissemination of results

The results of the project were disseminated by participating in various international conferences, publishing articles and filing a patent.


Conferences:

https://www.rpfoods.net/_files/ugd/759bc3_9d7abe2a2a5443939ead985ea9569d23.pdf 


Published articles:



Under review articles:


Patent Proposal

Project

Activities Stage I


Activities Stage II


Activities Stage III



Contact Proiect

Tel: +40 230 520 080 

Fax: +40 230 520 080 

Email: liliana.norocel@usm.ro

Contact USV

Tel: +40 230 216 147

Fax: +40 230 520 080

Email: rectorat@usv.ro