Nanophotonics “Lab-on-a-chip” Biosensors for Portable Diagnostics

Dr. Laura M. Lechuga - Nanobiosensors and Bioanalytical Applications Group, Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2) CSIC, The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology and CIBER-BBN Barcelona, Spain

 Abstract: The dream of having our own cell phone able to deliver an instant diagnostics of our health status could become a reality soon thanks to the last advances in nanobiosensors, photonics integration, nanobiotechnology and lab-on-a-chip which promise to surpass the existing challenges, opening the door to a global health access. These diagnostic point-of-care (POC) devices could afford the identification of any disease (as cancer or infections) at the earliest stage possible in a fast, simple and cost-effective way.

Nanophotonic biosensors have revealed themselves as the most promising candidates for achieving this dream. They offer advantages as miniaturization, relevant sensitivities, multiplexing and integration capability even in mobile platforms. The main objective of our research is to achieve such ultrasensitive platforms for mobile diagnostics using nanophotonic technologies and custom-designed biofunctionalization protocols, accomplishing the requirements of disposability and portability. We are using innovative designs of nanophotonic biosensors based on plasmonic nanostructures or silicon photonics technology (heteromodal nanointerferometers) and full microfluidics lab-on-chip integration.

Noticeably, we have implemented lab-on-chip biosensor prototypes able to directly detect very few harmful bacteria in human ascetic fluids, allergy reactions in patients´ blood serum, analysis of serum autoantibodies which indicate the onset of a colorectal cancer in its preliminary stage or the detection at attomolar level of microRNA biomarkers related to bladder cancer progression in urine, among others.

Bio: Prof. Lechuga received a Ph.D. degree in Chemistry from the University Complutense of Madrid (Spain). She is Full Professor of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC); since 2013 she is a Distinguished Visiting professor (PVE) at the Dept. of Microwaves and Photonics, School of Electrical and Computer Sciences, University of Campinas (Brazil).

Prof. Lechuga is the Head of the Nanobiosensors and Bioanalytical Applications Group in the Catalan Institute for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2). The principal focus of her research program is the technological development of photonic (plasmonics and silicon-based) and nanomechanical biosensors, their integration in portable lab-on-a-chip platforms and their application in clinical and environmental diagnostics. She has published over 190 articles, book chapters and conference proceedings, has 8 families of awarded patents at European, US or international level, and has presented more than 270 invited research papers. She has been the driving force for the establishment of one spin-off company in 2004 (SENSIA, S.L.) and co-founder of a new spin-off in 2010 (BIOD, S.L.).

Prof. Lechuga is associate editor of the IEEE Photonics Journal, associate editor of the J. Optics and Laser Technology (Elsevier) and is at the Editorial Board of the Journal of Nanobiosensors in Disease Diagnosis and of the Journal of Sensors. She has been nominated as Fellow of the Optical Society (OSA) in 2014.

Pizza lunch will be provided.