Screening of protein biomarkers for sports doping and veterinary control

Recent trends in smartphone-based detection for biomedical applications: a review

Smartphone-based imaging devices (SIDs) have shown to be versatile and have a wide range of biomedical applications. With the increasing demand for high-quality medical services, technological interventions such as portable devices that can be used in remote and resource-less conditions and have an impact on quantity and quality of care. Additionally, smartphone-based devices have shown their application in the field of teleimaging, food technology, education, etc. Depending on the application and imaging capability required, the optical arrangement of the SID varies which enables them to be used in multiple setups like bright-field, fluorescence, dark-field, and multiple arrays with certain changes in their optics and illumination. This comprehensive review discusses the numerous applications and development of SIDs towards histopathological examination, detection of bacteria and viruses, food technology, and routine diagnosis. Smartphone-based devices are complemented with deep learning methods to further increase the efficiency of the devices. Graphical Abstract.

Linking long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) and doping detection

In the fight against doping, efficient methods for detecting substances or biomarkers are still being improved. Indirect methods are an interesting alternative for the detection of substances misuse longitudinally. Here we shed lights the long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) as a possible biomarkers due to their characteristics such as tissue-specific expression and strict regulation.

Calling Biomarkers in Milk Using a Protein Microarray on Your Smartphone

Here we present the concept of a protein microarray-based fluorescence immunoassay for multiple biomarker detection in milk extracts by an ordinary smartphone. A multiplex immunoassay was designed on a microarray chip, having built-in positive and negative quality controls. After the immunoassay procedure, the 48 microspots were labelled with Quantum Dots (QD) depending on the protein biomarker levels in the sample. QD-fluorescence was subsequently detected by the smartphone camera under UV light excitation from LEDs embedded in a simple 3D-printed opto-mechanical smartphone attachment. The somewhat aberrant images obtained under such conditions, were corrected by newly developed Android-based software on the same smartphone, and protein biomarker profiles were calculated. The indirect detection of recombinant bovine somatotropin (rbST) in milk extracts based on altered biomarker profile of anti-rbST antibodies was selected as a real-life challenge. RbST-treated and untreated cows clearly showed reproducible treatment-dependent biomarker profiles in milk, in excellent agreement with results from a flow cytometer reference method. In a pilot experiment, anti-rbST antibody detection was multiplexed with the detection of another rbST-dependent biomarker, insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1). Milk extract IGF-1 levels were found to be increased after rbST treatment and correlated with the results obtained from the reference method. These data clearly demonstrate the potential of the portable protein microarray concept towards simultaneous detection of multiple biomarkers. We envisage broad application of this 'protein microarray on a smartphone'-concept for on-site testing, e.g., in food safety, environment and health monitoring.

Evaluation of the discriminative potential of a novel biomarker for estradiol treatments in bovine animals

The endogenous occurrence of natural hormones obstructs the application of classical targeted methods as confirmatory options. In the case of estradiol, the ultimate confirmation of its exogenous administration relies on gas chromatography coupled to combustion/isotope ratio mass spectrometry (GC-C/IRMS). A serum dipeptide composed of pyroglutamic acid and phenylalanine was identified as a potential biomarker of estradiol treatments in adult cows. To evaluate its potential to pinpoint suspicious samples, samples from prepubertal females under different estrogenic treatments have been analyzed. The results confirmed the up-regulation of the dipeptide in adult bovines. The 2-week-old females exhibited short-lasting responses only in a few animals. The 6-month-old female showed a delayed but clear increase on the biomarker level. The composition of the anabolic preparations, the dose, and/or the administration route are possible additional reasons for the reduced response in young animals. A comparison to previous results reported by various researchers is included.