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Biosensors
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Advances in Portable and Wearable Sensing Systems for Biochemical Monitoring
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Advances in Portable and Wearable Sensing Systems for Biochemical Monitoring

A special issue of Biosensors (ISSN 2079-6374). This special issue belongs to the section "Wearable Biosensors".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 October 2025 | Viewed by 5700

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Yanli Lu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Biosensor National Special Laboratory, Key Laboratory for Biomedical Engineering of Education Ministry, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China
Interests: biosensors; smartphone based biosensors; wearable biosensors; electrochemical sensor; optical biosensors; healthcare monitoring; new electroanalytical methodology applied to environmental, food, and health fields
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Zetao Chen

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Disaster and Emergency Medicine, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
Interests: biosensors; wearable sensor; flexible biosensing; electrochemical sensor; optical biosensor; healthcare monitoring

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In recent years, portable and wearable sensing technologies have been one of the most rapidly developing hightech and interdisciplinary hotspots. The emerging wearable and portable sensing technologies are widely expected to meet the growing needs and challenges in healthcare due to their low cost, simple operation, easy readout, and respectable detection performance. Portable and wearable sensing systems have already accomplished some demonstration applications, such as biomarker detection in blood, urine, cerebrospinal fluid, sweat detection, wound condition monitoring and treatment, etc. It provides an alternate avenue to clinical diagnostics. With continued innovation and development, biomaterials, nanomaterials, flexible materials, compact sensing systems, and novel detecting techniques have all contributed to the substantial advancement of portable and wearable systems. However, there are still a lot of obstacles to overcome and room for improvement in fully utilizing the capabilities of portable and wearable sensing devices. Therefore, both breathable and biocompatible materials, sampling preparation techniques, stable and accurate sensors and their arrays, long-term power supply systems, stable data acquisition and analysis terminals, fully flexible electronic circuits, miniaturized detection and treatment integration systems, detection and analysis of multiple physiological parameters, etc., are key problems in future portable and wearable system research. Advances in any of these areas will greatly boost the development of wearable systems in the medical field.

The aim of this Issue on “Advances in Portable and Wearable Sensing Systems for Biochemical Monitoring” is to highlight recent methodological advances in portable and wearable biosensors and systems for health monitoring and novel materials and platforms for biochemical parameter detection, from the design of new biosensors and devices to the experimental verification, up to the point-of-care testing and wearable applications. Original research articles and review papers are welcome.

We look forward to receiving your outstanding research outcomes.

Dr. Yanli Lu
Dr. Zetao Chen
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. Biosensors 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.

Keywords

  • portable sensing system
  • wearable system
  • bioelectronics
  • biochemical monitoring
  • self-powered biosensors
  • in situ biosensing
  • epidermal patches
  • implantable sensors
  • ingestible sensors
  • biosensors

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Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

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16 pages, 6568 KiB  
Article
Rapid Mental Stress Evaluation Based on Non-Invasive, Wearable Cortisol Detection with the Self-Assembly of Nanomagnetic Beads
by Junjie Li, Qian Chen, Weixia Li, Shuang Li, Cherie S. Tan, Shuai Ma, Shike Hou, Bin Fan and Zetao Chen
Biosensors 2025, 15(3), 140; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios15030140 - 23 Feb 2025
Viewed by 369
Abstract
The rapid and timely evaluation of the mental health of emergency rescuers can effectively improve the quality of emergency rescues. However, biosensors for mental health evaluation are now facing challenges, such as the rapid and portable detection of multiple mental biomarkers. In this [...] Read more.
The rapid and timely evaluation of the mental health of emergency rescuers can effectively improve the quality of emergency rescues. However, biosensors for mental health evaluation are now facing challenges, such as the rapid and portable detection of multiple mental biomarkers. In this study, a non-invasive, flexible, wearable electrochemical biosensor was constructed based on the self-assembly of nanomagnetic beads for the rapid detection of cortisol in interstitial fluid (ISF) to assess the mental stress of emergency rescuers. Based on a one-step reduction, gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) were functionally modified on a screen-printed electrode to improve the detection of electrochemical properties. Afterwards, nanocomposites of MXene and multi-wall carbon nanotubes were coated onto the AuNPs layer through a physical deposition to enhance the electron transfer rate. The carboxylated nanomagnetic beads immobilized with a cortisol antibody were treated as sensing elements for the specific recognition of the mental stress marker, cortisol. With the rapid attraction of magnets to nanomagnetic beads, the sensing element can be rapidly replaced on the electrode uniformly, which can lead to extreme improvements in detection efficiency. The detected linear response to cortisol was 0–32 ng/mL. With the integrated reverse iontophoresis technique on a flexible printed circuit board, the ISF can be extracted non-invasively for wearable cortisol detection. The stimulating current was set to be under 1 mA for the extraction, which was within the safe and acceptable range for human bodies. Therefore, based on the positive correlation between cortisol concentration and mental stress, the mental stress of emergency rescuers can be evaluated, which will provide feedback on the psychological statuses of rescuers and effectively improve rescuer safety and rescue efficiency. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Portable and Wearable Sensing Systems for Biochemical Monitoring)
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16 pages, 3648 KiB  
Article
Emerging Dual-Gate FET Sensor Paradigm for Ultra-Low Concentration Cortisol Detection in Complex Bioenvironments
by Seung-Jin Lee and Won-Ju Cho
Biosensors 2025, 15(3), 134; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios15030134 - 22 Feb 2025
Viewed by 373
Abstract
Cortisol is a pivotal hormone regulating stress responses and is linked to various health conditions, making precise and continuous monitoring essential. Despite their non-invasive nature, conventional cortisol detection methods often suffer from inadequate sensitivity and reliability at low concentrations, limiting their diagnostic utility. [...] Read more.
Cortisol is a pivotal hormone regulating stress responses and is linked to various health conditions, making precise and continuous monitoring essential. Despite their non-invasive nature, conventional cortisol detection methods often suffer from inadequate sensitivity and reliability at low concentrations, limiting their diagnostic utility. To address these limitations, this study introduces a novel paradigm for high sensitivity cortisol detection using field-effect transistor (FET) sensors with dual-gate (DG) structures. The proposed sensor platform enhances sensitivity through capacitive coupling without requiring external circuits. Cortisol detection performance was evaluated by immobilizing monoclonal antibodies activated via 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)carbodiimide and N-hydroxysuccinimide onto a SnO2 thin film-based extended-gate. The results revealed a sensitivity of 14.3 mV/dec in single-gate mode, which significantly increased to 243.8 mV/dec in DG mode, achieving a detection limit of 276 pM. Additionally, the reliability and stability of the sensor were validated by evaluating drift effects, confirming its ability to provide accurate detection even in artificial saliva environments containing interfering substances. In conclusion, the DG-FET-based cortisol detection approach developed in this study significantly outperforms conventional FET-based methods, enabling precise monitoring at ultra-low concentrations. This approach holds significant potential for diverse bioassays requiring high sensitivity and reliability in complex environments. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Portable and Wearable Sensing Systems for Biochemical Monitoring)
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13 pages, 1266 KiB  
Article
A Wireless and Wearable Multimodal Sensor to Non-Invasively Monitor Transabdominal Placental Oxygen Saturation and Maternal Physiological Signals
by Thien Nguyen, Soongho Park, Asma Sodager, Jinho Park, Dahiana M. Gallo, Guoyang Luo, Roberto Romero and Amir Gandjbakhche
Biosensors 2024, 14(10), 481; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios14100481 - 7 Oct 2024
Viewed by 1776
Abstract
Poor placental development and placental defects can lead to adverse pregnancy outcomes such as pre-eclampsia, fetal growth restriction, and stillbirth. This study introduces two sensors, which use a near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) technique to measure placental oxygen saturation transabdominally. The first one, an NIRS [...] Read more.
Poor placental development and placental defects can lead to adverse pregnancy outcomes such as pre-eclampsia, fetal growth restriction, and stillbirth. This study introduces two sensors, which use a near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) technique to measure placental oxygen saturation transabdominally. The first one, an NIRS sensor, is a wearable device consisting of multiple NIRS channels. The second one, a Multimodal sensor, which is an upgraded version of the NIRS sensor, is a wireless and wearable device, integrating a motion sensor and multiple NIRS channels. A pilot clinical study was conducted to assess the feasibility of the two sensors in measuring transabdominal placental oxygenation in 36 pregnant women (n = 12 for the NIRS sensor and n = 24 for the Multimodal sensor). Among these subjects, 4 participants had an uncomplicated pregnancy, and 32 patients had either maternal pre-existing conditions/complications, neonatal complications, and/or placental pathologic abnormalities. The study results indicate that the patients with maternal complicated conditions (69.5 ± 5.4%), placental pathologic abnormalities (69.4 ± 4.9%), and neonatal complications (68.0 ± 5.1%) had statistically significantly lower transabdominal placental oxygenation levels than those with an uncomplicated pregnancy (76.0 ± 4.4%) (F (3,104) = 6.6, p = 0.0004). Additionally, this study shows the capability of the Multimodal sensor in detecting the maternal heart rate and respiratory rate, fetal movements, and uterine contractions. These findings demonstrate the feasibility of the two sensors in the real-time continuous monitoring of transabdominal placental oxygenation to detect at-risk pregnancies and guide timely clinical interventions, thereby improving pregnancy outcomes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Portable and Wearable Sensing Systems for Biochemical Monitoring)
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Review

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31 pages, 5088 KiB  
Review
Advances in Wearable Biosensors for Wound Healing and Infection Monitoring
by Dang-Khoa Vo and Kieu The Loan Trinh
Biosensors 2025, 15(3), 139; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios15030139 - 23 Feb 2025
Viewed by 715
Abstract
Wound healing is a complicated biological process that is important for restoring tissue integrity and function after injury. Infection, usually due to bacterial colonization, significantly complicates this process by hindering the course of healing and enhancing the chances of systemic complications. Recent advances [...] Read more.
Wound healing is a complicated biological process that is important for restoring tissue integrity and function after injury. Infection, usually due to bacterial colonization, significantly complicates this process by hindering the course of healing and enhancing the chances of systemic complications. Recent advances in wearable biosensors have transformed wound care by making real-time monitoring of biomarkers such as pH, temperature, moisture, and infection-related metabolites like trimethylamine and uric acid. This review focuses on recent advances in biosensor technologies designed for wound management. Novel sensor architectures, such as flexible and stretchable electronics, colorimetric patches, and electrochemical platforms, enable the non-invasive detection of changes associated with wounds with high specificity and sensitivity. These are increasingly combined with AI and analytics based on smartphones that can enable timely and personalized interventions. Examples are the PETAL patch sensor that applies multiple sensing mechanisms for wide-ranging views on wound status and closed-loop systems that connect biosensors to therapeutic devices to automate infection control. Additionally, self-powered biosensors that tap into body heat or energy from the biofluids themselves avoid any external batteries and are thus more effective in field use or with limited resources. Internet of Things connectivity allows further support for remote sharing and monitoring of data, thus supporting telemedicine applications. Although wearable biosensors have developed relatively rapidly and their prospects continue to expand, regular clinical application is stalled by significant challenges such as regulatory, cost, patient compliance, and technical problems related to sensor accuracy, biofouling, and power, among others, that need to be addressed by innovative solutions. The goal of this review is to synthesize current trends, challenges, and future directions in wound healing and infection monitoring, with emphasis on the potential for wearable biosensors to improve patient outcomes and reduce healthcare burdens. These innovations are leading the way toward next-generation wound care by bridging advanced materials science, biotechnology, and digital health. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Portable and Wearable Sensing Systems for Biochemical Monitoring)
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33 pages, 14611 KiB  
Review
Silicon-Based Biosensors: A Critical Review of Silicon’s Role in Enhancing Biosensing Performance
by Waqar Muhammad, Jaeyoon Song, Sehyeon Kim, Falguni Ahmed, Eunseo Cho, Huiseop Lee and Jinsik Kim
Biosensors 2025, 15(2), 119; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios15020119 - 18 Feb 2025
Viewed by 440
Abstract
This review into recent advancements in silicon-based technology, with a particular emphasis on the biomedical applications of silicon sensors. Owing to their diminutive size, high sensitivity, and intrinsic compatibility with electronic systems, silicon-based sensors have found widespread utilization across healthcare, industrial, and environmental [...] Read more.
This review into recent advancements in silicon-based technology, with a particular emphasis on the biomedical applications of silicon sensors. Owing to their diminutive size, high sensitivity, and intrinsic compatibility with electronic systems, silicon-based sensors have found widespread utilization across healthcare, industrial, and environmental monitoring domains. In the realm of biomedical sensing, silicon has demonstrated significant potential to enhance human health outcomes while simultaneously driving progress in microfabrication techniques for multifunctional device development. The review systematically examines the versatile roles of silicon in the fabrication of electrodes, sensing channels, and substrates. Silicon electrodes are widely used in electrochemical biosensors for glucose monitoring and neural activity recording, while sensing channels in field-effect transistor biosensors enable the detection of cancer biomarkers and small molecules. Porous silicon substrates are applied in optical biosensors for label-free protein and pathogen detection. Key challenges in this field, including the interaction of silicon with biomolecules, the economic barriers to miniaturization, and issues related to signal stability, are critically analyzed. Proposed strategies to address these challenges and improve sensor functionality and reliability are also discussed. Furthermore, the article explores emerging developments in silicon-based biosensors, particularly their integration into wearable technologies. The pivotal role of artificial intelligence (AI) in enhancing the performance, functionality, and real-time capabilities of these sensors is also highlighted. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the current state, challenges, and future directions in the field of silicon-based biomedical sensing technologies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Portable and Wearable Sensing Systems for Biochemical Monitoring)
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35 pages, 3819 KiB  
Review
Next-Generation Potentiometric Sensors: A Review of Flexible and Wearable Technologies
by Mahmoud Abdelwahab Fathy and Philippe Bühlmann
Biosensors 2025, 15(1), 51; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios15010051 - 15 Jan 2025
Viewed by 1252
Abstract
In recent years, the field of wearable sensors has undergone significant evolution, emerging as a pivotal topic of research due to the capacity of such sensors to gather physiological data during various human activities. Transitioning from basic fitness trackers, these sensors are continuously [...] Read more.
In recent years, the field of wearable sensors has undergone significant evolution, emerging as a pivotal topic of research due to the capacity of such sensors to gather physiological data during various human activities. Transitioning from basic fitness trackers, these sensors are continuously being improved, with the ultimate objective to make compact, sophisticated, highly integrated, and adaptable multi-functional devices that seamlessly connect to clothing or the body, and continuously monitor bodily signals without impeding the wearer’s comfort or well-being. Potentiometric sensors, leveraging a range of different solid contact materials, have emerged as a preferred choice for wearable chemical or biological sensors. Nanomaterials play a pivotal role, offering unique properties, such as high conductivity and surface-to-volume ratios. This article provides a review of recent advancements in wearable potentiometric sensors utilizing various solid contacts, with a particular emphasis on nanomaterials. These sensors are employed for precise ion concentration determinations, notably sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, ammonium, and chloride, in human biological fluids. This review highlights two primary applications, that is, (1) the enhancement of athletic performance by continuous monitoring of ion levels in sweat to gauge the athlete’s health status, and (2) the facilitation of clinical diagnosis and preventive healthcare by monitoring the health status of patients, in particular to detect early signs of dehydration, fatigue, and muscle spasms. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Portable and Wearable Sensing Systems for Biochemical Monitoring)
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