Microfluidic Biosensors for Diagnostic Devices

Biosensor company Sensortec and microfluidics specialist Minifab have announced that they are collaborating to provide a faster and lower cost microfluidic biosensor development platform for R&D laboratories.

Universal Sensors of Cambridge, which is contracted by Sensortec to carry out all R&D on its proprietary biosensor technology, is working with Minifab (Melbourne, Australia) on the development and marketing of the microfluidic biosensor development platform.

The collaboration will allow other developers to build upon this expertise to transfer their assays onto polymer microfluidic biosensor platforms, allowing development of point-of-use diagnostic devices.

Patented Sensortec technology provides a universally applicable electrochemical biosensor suitable for a whole range of diagnostic tests and other quantitative receptor-target binding assays requiring high analytical sensitivity.

This biosensor technology has multiple applications and has already been evaluated for use in the environmental and food quality assurance sectors for detecting such contaminants as mycotoxins and drug residues.

Using micro and nano engineering, the MiniChemLab family of systems is an integrated platform to be used by biosensor assay developers wishing to optimise system specifications to realize commercial point-of-use diagnostic instrumentation.

Minifab CEO, Erol Harvey, says: 'We have been impressed at the robustness and great sensitivity of the low cost biosensor technology.

'The simplicity of the electrochemical sensor easily allows it to be integrated into our polymer microfluidic systems'.

Commenting on why Sensortec has chosen Minifab to work with, Duncan Purvis said: 'Minifab has a well demonstrated rapid-prototyping technology for polymer microfluidics which easily translates into low-cost high-volume production.'