Dear Colleagues,

Nanotechnology is playing an increasingly-important role in the development of biosensors. The sensitivity and performance of biosensors is being improved by using nanomaterials for their construction. The use of these nanomaterials has allowed the introduction of many new signal transduction technologies in biosensors. Because of their submicron dimensions, nanosensors, nanoprobes, and other nanosystems have allowed simple and rapid analyses of food toxicants and environmental pollutants. Lipid membranes represent an appropriate biocompatible structure for the development of new types of biosensors with fast response (on the order of a few seconds) and high sensitivity nanomolar detection limits) that may be used in health diagnosis and in field applications for food analysis and environmental monitoring. Similar systems as lipid membranes using surface recognition (for example molecularly imprinted polymers, MIPs) offer similar advantages and a large number of this type of biosensors have been reported in the literature. Control over the positioning and orientation of molecules on a surface allows the fabrication of nanobiosensors with new functionalities and a broad range of applications. Self-assembled monolayers of noncovalently bound molecules ensured the relevant path to form areas with peculiar functions, which allow tuning precisely the physicochemical properties of the surface. It is extremely important for the device sensitivity that the recognizing elements have to improve surface density, stability, need to minimize some interactions with substances other than analyte. This type of materials can be designed using different molecular methods, i.e., Langmuir-Blodgett (LB)-type techniques, SAMs, as well as electrolytic deposition nanosensors based on lipid membranes, and related materials are cost efficient, easy-to-use and are good alternatives to expensive and time-consuming standard analytical methods (i.e., chromatography or mass spectroscopy).

We invite authors to contribute original research articles or comprehensive review articles covering the current state-of-the-art and the future trends in the design of biosensor nanotechnology based on lipid membranes and related devices. This Special Issue aims to cover a broad range of subjects, from device design and assembly to analytical development, implementation and commercialization prospects. The format of welcomed articles includes full papers, communications, and reviews.

Prof. Dr. Dimitros P. Nikolelis
Dr. Georgia-Paraskevi Nikoleli
Prof. Dr. Christina Siontorou
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Membranes is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• nanotechnology
• biosensors
• lipid membranes
• surface recognition devices
• rapid and remote detection of food toxicants and environmental pollutants