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Nanotechnology-Enhanced Biosensors for Environmental and Biomedical Applications

Abstract

Biosensors represent a modern engineering tool with widespread applications in numerous areas, including health care, environmental monitoring, microbiology, and food safety and security. Through the integration of nanotechnology, biosensors have opened the door to novel sensing mechanisms, enhancing their performance and sensing capabilities beyond current limitations. Several nanotechnology-enabled biosensors have emerged to address the limitations of current bioanalytical methods in terms of sensitivity, throughput, ease-of-use, and miniaturization.

In line with these advancements, my research focuses on the development of nanotechnology-enhanced biosensors. I explore the utilization of novel nanomaterials in biosensor fabrication, with the aim of creating new handheld devices capable of rapidly detecting molecules at the point of care.

Biography

Dr. Du received her Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry from Nanjing University in 2005. She joined Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) in 2010 and later moved to Washington State University in 2013. With a broad background in Analytical Chemistry, her research extends to the field of nano-biotechnology, focusing on nanomaterial synthesis and the development of small-scale devices for biomedical diagnosis, food safety, and environmental applications.

Her research has been funded by prestigious organizations, including the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), National Science Foundation (NSF), and other non-profit organizations. Her work has resulted in over 300 publications. In recognition of her contributions, Dr. Du has been named "Highly Cited Researcher" (Web of Science), ranking among the top 1% most cited researchers worldwide in 2020, 2021, and 2022, respectively.