Using nanoscale cantilevers in a microfluidics device, a team of European researchers has developed a portable biosensor capable of detecting specific genetic sequences. Such a device could be used to detect the presence of cancer-associated genetic changes at a patient's bedside or in a physician's office. This work has been published in the journal Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical.

Laura Lechuga, Ph.D., of the Spanish Microelectronics National Center, headed the team that developed this new sensor, which integrates 20 nanocantilevers, 20 surface emitting lasers, and light-sensing circuitry within a single microfluidics device. Each nanocantilever is coated with a short nucleic acid sequence that is complementary to a target gene, and each cantilever is irradiated by its own laser.