Department of Biotechnology, School of Chemical and Life Science, Jamia Hamdard University, New Delhi 110062, India.
Department of Toxicology, School of Chemical and Life Science, Jamia Hamdard University, New Delhi 110062, India.
Biosensors (Basel). 2024 Oct 3;14(10):477. doi: 10.3390/bios14100477.
The increasing use of illicit drugs has become a major global concern. Illicit drugs interact with the brain and the body altering an individual's mood and behavior. As the substance-of-abuse (SOA) crisis continues to spread across the world, in order to reduce trafficking and unlawful activity, it is important to use point-of-care devices like biosensors. Currently, there are certain conventional detection methods, which include gas chromatography (GC), mass spectrometry (MS), surface ionization, surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS), surface plasmon resonance (SPR), electrochemiluminescence (ECL), high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), etc., for the detection of abused drugs. These methods have the advantage of high accuracy and sensitivity but are generally laborious, expensive, and require trained operators, along with high sample requirements, and they are not suitable for on-site drug detection scenarios. As a result, there is an urgent need for point-of-care technologies for a variety of drugs that can replace conventional techniques, such as a biosensor, specifically an immunosensor. An immunosensor is an analytical device that integrates an antibody-based recognition element with a transducer to detect specific molecules (antigens). In an immunosensor, the highly selective antigen-antibody interaction is used to identify and quantify the target analyte. The binding event between the antibody and antigen is converted by the transducer into a measurable signal, such as electrical, optical, or electrochemical, which corresponds to the presence and concentration of the analyte in the sample. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of various illicit drugs, the conventional methods employed for their detection, and the advantages of immunosensors over conventional techniques. It highlights the critical need for on-site detection and explores emerging point-of-care testing methods. The paper also outlines future research goals in this field, emphasizing the potential of advanced technologies to enhance the accuracy, efficiency, and convenience of drug detection.
非法药物的使用不断增加，已成为一个全球性的主要关注点。非法药物与大脑和身体相互作用，改变个体的情绪和行为。随着滥用物质危机继续在全球范围内蔓延，为了减少贩运和非法活动，使用即时检测设备（如生物传感器）非常重要。目前，有一些常规的检测方法，包括气相色谱（GC）、质谱（MS）、表面电离、表面增强拉曼光谱（SERS）、表面等离子体共振（SPR）、电致化学发光（ECL）、高效液相色谱（HPLC）等，用于检测滥用药物。这些方法具有准确性和灵敏度高的优点，但通常繁琐、昂贵，需要经过培训的操作人员，并且需要高样本量，不适合现场药物检测场景。因此，迫切需要即时检测各种药物的技术，以替代传统技术，如生物传感器，特别是免疫传感器。免疫传感器是一种将基于抗体的识别元件与换能器集成在一起的分析设备，用于检测特定分子（抗原）。在免疫传感器中，高度选择性的抗原-抗体相互作用用于识别和定量目标分析物。抗体与抗原之间的结合事件由换能器转换为可测量的信号，如电、光或电化学信号，该信号与样品中分析物的存在和浓度相对应。本文全面概述了各种非法药物、用于检测这些药物的常规方法，以及免疫传感器相对于传统技术的优势。它强调了现场检测的迫切需要，并探讨了新兴的即时检测方法。本文还概述了该领域的未来研究目标，强调了先进技术提高药物检测准确性、效率和便利性的潜力。
