A disposable, wearable, flexible, stitched textile electrochemical biosensing platform

• Published in: Biosensors & bioelectronics Vol. 194; p. 113604
• Main Authors: Piper, Andrew, Öberg Månsson, Ingrid, Khaliliazar, Shirin, Landin, Roman, Hamedi, Mahiar Max
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier B.V 15.12.2021
• Subjects: Au-thiolate self-assembled monolayers; Disposable; Glucose in sweat; Textile; Wearable; Disposable; Textile; Glucose in sweat; Wearable; Au-thiolate self-assembled monolayers
• ISSN: 0956-5663; 1873-4235; 1873-4235
• DOI: 10.1016/j.bios.2021.113604

Wearable sensors are a fast growing and exciting research area, the success of smart watches are a great example of the utility and demand for wearable sensing systems. The current state of the art routinely uses expensive and bulky equipment designed for long term use. There is a need for cheap and disposable wearable sensors to make single use measurements, primarily in the area of biomarker detection. Herein we report the ability to make cheap (0.22 USD/sensor), disposable, wearable sensors by stitching conductive gold coated threads into fabrics. These threads are easily functionalised with thiolate self-assembled monolayers which can be designed for the detection of a broad range of different biomarkers. This all textile sensing platform is ideally suited to be scaled up and has the added advantage of being stretchable with insignificant effect on the electrochemistry of the devices. As a proof of principle, the devices have been functionalised with a continuous glucose sensing system which was able to detect glucose in human sweat across the clinically relevant range (0.1–0.6 mM). The sensors have a sensitivity of 126 ± 14 nA/mM of glucose and a limit of detection of 301 ± 2 nM. This makes them ideally suited for biomarker detection in point-of-care sensing applications. •A cheap and disposable wearable platform has been developed.•This will allow the electrochemical detection of biomarkers on or lost from the body.•The devices are exceptionally cheap, stable, reproducible, reliable, scalable and flexible.•As proof of principle a sweat based glucose sensor has been developed.•The sensors have a sensitivity of 126 ± 14 nA/mM of glucose and a limit of detection of 301 ± 2 pM.