We reported the detection of pan malaria and P. falciparum species using a dye-based reaction catalyzed by the biomarker enzymes Plasmodium lactate dehydrogenase (PLDH) and Plasmodium falciparum glutamate dehydrogenase (Pf GDH), respectively, through instrument-based and instrument-ree approaches.

Aptamers are “chemical antibodies” with great potential for various applications where antibodies are used. However, traditional methods for aptamer selection are time-consuming and labor-intensive. Our lab has developed a totally new concept for aptamer discovery, i.e., hydrogel for aptamer selection (HAS). HAS allows us to select aptamers in a single step only taking 60 hours.

We reported a wearable patch based on soft microfluidics and flexible electrodes functionalized with a pseudoknot-assisted conformation-switching aptamer for pH-calibrated, continuous, non-invasive cortisol monitoring in sweat,This wearable electrochemical sensor exhibited a broad dynamic range (1 pM - 10 μM) with a sub-picomolar limit of detection in sweat. The patch was validated by measuring cortisol in real-time on three human subjects with induced stress.

A reagent-free electrochemical aptasensor with a nanocomposite antifouling layer for sensitive and continuous detection of cortisol in human serum. A thiolated, methylene blue (MB)- tagged conformation-switching aptamer was immobilized over a gold nanowire (AuNW) nanocomposite to capture cortisol and generate a signal proportional to the cortisol concentration. The signal is recorded through differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) and chronoamperometry.

An aptamer-based field effect transistor (aptaFET) biosensor, developed by using an extended gate field effect transistor with inter-digitated gold microelectrodes (IDμE) for the detection of the malaria biomarker Plasmodium falciparum glutamate dehydrogenase (PfGDH) in serum samples. A 90 mer long ssDNA aptamer (NG3) selective to PfGDH was used in the aptaFET to capture the target protein

We reported an aptamer-based SARS-CoV-2 salivary antigen assay employing only low-cost reagents ($3.20/test) and an off-the-shelf glucometer. The test was engineered around a glucometer as it is quantitative, easy to use, and the most prevalent piece of diagnostic equipment globally, making the test highly scalable with an infrastructure that is already in place.