Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Xueyuan Road 1088, Shenzhen 518055, China.
Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, National University of Singapore, 4 Engineering Drive 4, Singapore 117576, Singapore.
Biosensors (Basel). 2022 Jul 29;12(8):577. doi: 10.3390/bios12080577.
As an emerging stimuli-responsive material, liquid crystal (LC) has attracted great attentions beyond display applications, especially in the area of biochemical sensors. Its high sensitivity and fast response to various biological or chemical analytes make it possible to fabricate a simple, real-time, label-free, and cost-effective LC-based detection platform. Advancements have been achieved in the development of LC-based sensors, both in fundamental research and practical applications. This paper briefly reviews the state-of-the-art research on LC sensors in the biochemical field, from basic properties of LC material to the detection mechanisms of LC sensors that are categorized into LC-solid, LC-aqueous, and LC droplet platforms. In addition, various analytes detected by LCs are presented as a proof of the application value, including metal ions, nucleic acids, proteins, glucose, and some toxic chemical substances. Furthermore, a machine-learning-assisted LC sensing platform is realized to provide a foundation for device intelligence and automatization. It is believed that a portable, convenient, and user-friendly LC-based biochemical sensing device will be achieved in the future.
作为一种新兴的刺激响应材料，液晶（LC）除了在显示应用之外，还引起了人们极大的关注，特别是在生化传感器领域。它对各种生物或化学分析物的高灵敏度和快速响应使得制造简单、实时、无标记和具有成本效益的基于 LC 的检测平台成为可能。在基于 LC 的传感器的开发方面，无论是在基础研究还是实际应用方面都取得了进展。本文简要回顾了生化领域中基于 LC 的传感器的最新研究进展，从 LC 材料的基本特性到 LC 传感器的检测机制，这些机制分为 LC-固、LC-水和 LC-液滴平台。此外，还介绍了通过 LC 检测的各种分析物，以证明其应用价值，包括金属离子、核酸、蛋白质、葡萄糖和一些有毒化学物质。此外，还实现了一种基于机器学习的 LC 传感平台，为设备智能化和自动化提供了基础。相信未来将实现一种便携式、方便和用户友好的基于 LC 的生化传感设备。
