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Biosensors
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Sensors for Environmental Monitoring and Food Safety—2nd Edition
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Sensors for Environmental Monitoring and Food Safety—2nd Edition

A special issue of Biosensors (ISSN 2079-6374). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Biosensors and Biosensing".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 May 2026 | Viewed by 2285

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Kevin C. Honeychurch

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Applied Sciences, University of the West of England, Frenchay Campus, Coldharbour Lane, Bristol BS16 1QY, UK
Interests: sensors; biosensors; voltammetry; chromatography
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Martina Piano

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Applied Sciences, University of the West of England, Bristol BS16 1QY, UK
Interests: electrochemistry; sensors; biosensors
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. David Ferrier

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Bio-Sensing Technology, University of the West of England, Frenchay Campus, Bristol BS16 1QY, UK
Interests: biosensors; health technology; electrochemical sensors; point-of-care applications; nanocomposites; nanoparticle synthesis; green synthesis

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Electrochemical sensors and biosensors represent a promising solution for the affordable, quick, and decentralized testing of complex samples and are accessible even to those with minimal training. They hold significant potential for food and environmental analysis, but several technical and commercial challenges must first be addressed in order to fully realize their benefits.

This Special Issue of Biosensors, titled “Sensors for Environmental Monitoring and Food Safety”, aims to showcase the latest advancements in this dynamic field. We invite you to contribute research that highlights recent developments and applications in this field. Our focus includes both electrochemical and non-electrochemical sensors, utilizing classical and advanced techniques such as enzymes, antibodies, DNA, aptamers, molecularly imprinted polymers, and nanotechnology. We welcome submissions in the form of reviews, communications, and research articles.

Dr. Kevin C. Honeychurch
Dr. Martina Piano
Dr. David Ferrier
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Biosensors is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • food
  • beverages
  • water
  • air
  • nanotechnology
  • enzymes
  • antibodies
  • DNA
  • aptamers
  • molecularly imprinted polymers
  • sensors
  • biosensors

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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14 pages, 1621 KB  
Article
A Bluetooth-Enabled Electrochemical Platform Based on Saccharomyces cerevisiae Yeast Cells for Copper Detection
by Ehtisham Wahid, Ohiemi Benjamin Ocheja, Antonello Longo, Enrico Marsili, Massimo Trotta, Matteo Grattieri, Cataldo Guaragnella and Nicoletta Guaragnella
Biosensors 2025, 15(9), 583; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios15090583 (registering DOI) - 5 Sep 2025
Abstract
Copper contamination in the environment poses significant risks to both soil and human health, making the need for reliable monitoring methods crucial. In this study, we report the use of the EmStat Pico module as potentiostat to develop a portable electrochemical biosensor for [...] Read more.
Copper contamination in the environment poses significant risks to both soil and human health, making the need for reliable monitoring methods crucial. In this study, we report the use of the EmStat Pico module as potentiostat to develop a portable electrochemical biosensor for copper detection, utilizing yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells immobilized on a polydopamine (PDA)-coated screen-printed electrode (SPE). By optimizing the sensor design with a horizontal assembly and the volume reduction in the electrolyte solution, we achieved a 10-fold increase in current density with higher range of copper concentrations (0–300 µM CuSO4) compared to traditional (or previous) vertical dipping setups. Additionally, the use of genetically engineered copper-responsive yeast cells further improved sensor performance, with the recombinant strain showing a 1.7-fold increase in current density over the wild-type strain. The biosensor demonstrated excellent reproducibility (R2 > 0.95) and linearity over a broad range of copper concentrations, making it suitable for precise quantitative analysis. To further enhance portability and usability, a Bluetooth-enabled electrochemical platform was integrated with a web application for real-time data analysis, enabling on-site monitoring and providing a reliable, cost-effective tool for copper detection in real world settings. This system offers a promising solution for addressing the growing need for efficient environmental monitoring, especially in agriculture. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sensors for Environmental Monitoring and Food Safety—2nd Edition)
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13 pages, 7904 KB  
Article
A Bioelectric Active Hydrogel Sensor for Trace Detection of Heavy Metal Ions in Livestock and Poultry Farm Wastewater
by Heng-Chi Liu, Jia-Xin Du, Jie Wang, Junying Liu, Luyu Yang and Yang-Chun Yong
Biosensors 2025, 15(6), 341; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios15060341 - 29 May 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 631
Abstract
Heavy metal contamination in livestock and poultry farm wastewater poses significant risks to both the environment and human health, so it is critical to accurately and rapidly quantify heavy metal ion concentrations in water. This research develops a bioelectric active hydrogel sensor for [...] Read more.
Heavy metal contamination in livestock and poultry farm wastewater poses significant risks to both the environment and human health, so it is critical to accurately and rapidly quantify heavy metal ion concentrations in water. This research develops a bioelectric active hydrogel sensor for detecting heavy metal ions in livestock wastewater. The sensor integrates microbial surface display technology with graphene hydrogel, displaying glucose oxidase (GOx) on the surface of yeast cells, and covalently incorporating it into the graphene hydrogel through the bio-reduction activity of metal-reducing bacteria, enhancing its electrochemical performance. The sensor demonstrates excellent sensitivity and stability in detecting Cu2+, with a detection limit for Cu2+ of 17.0 µM. This sensor is also applicable for detecting Zn2+ in wastewater. When various heavy metal ions coexist in the solution, they exert a more pronounced inhibitory effect on enzyme activity. Consequently, the sensor can be employed to assess the overall heavy metal content in water samples. In the detection of Cu2+ in real livestock and poultry wastewater, the recovery rate of the graphene hydrogel electrode ranged from 88% to 106.5%, indicating that the sensor holds significant potential for application in actual sample analysis. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sensors for Environmental Monitoring and Food Safety—2nd Edition)
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Review

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29 pages, 3343 KB  
Review
Progress in Nickel MOF-Based Materials for Electrochemical Biosensor and Supercapacitor Applications
by Shanmugam Vignesh, Khursheed Ahmad and Tae Hwan Oh
Biosensors 2025, 15(9), 560; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios15090560 - 25 Aug 2025
Viewed by 617
Abstract
Nickel-based metal–organic frameworks (Ni-MOFs) have received enormous amounts of attention from the scientific community due to their excellent porosity, larger specific surface area, tunable structure, and intrinsic redox properties. In previous years, Ni-MOFs and their hybrid composite materials have been extensively explored for [...] Read more.
Nickel-based metal–organic frameworks (Ni-MOFs) have received enormous amounts of attention from the scientific community due to their excellent porosity, larger specific surface area, tunable structure, and intrinsic redox properties. In previous years, Ni-MOFs and their hybrid composite materials have been extensively explored for electrochemical sensing applications. As per the reported literature, Ni-MOF-based hybrid materials have been used in the fabrication of electrochemical sensors for the monitoring of ascorbic acid, glucose, L-tryptophan, bisphenol A, carbendazim, catechol, hydroquinone, 4-chlorophenol, uric acid, kaempferol, adenine, L-cysteine, etc. The presence of synergistic effects in Ni-MOF-based hybrid materials plays a crucial role in the development of highly selective electrochemical sensors. Thus, Ni-MOF-based materials exhibited enhanced sensitivity and selectivity with reasonable real sample recovery, which suggested their potential for practical applications. In addition, Ni-MOF-based hybrid composites were also adopted as electrode modifiers for the development of supercapacitors. The Ni-MOF-based materials demonstrated excellent specific capacitance at low current densities with reasonable cyclic stability. This review article provides an overview of recent advancements in the utilization of Ni-MOF-based electrode modifiers with metal oxides, carbon-based materials, MXenes, polymers, and LDH, etc., for the electrochemical detection of environmental pollutants and biomolecules and for supercapacitor applications. In addition, Ni-based bimetallic and trimetallic catalysts and their composites have been reviewed for electrochemical sensing and supercapacitor applications. The key challenges, limitations, and future perspectives of Ni-MOF-based materials are discussed. We believe that the present review article may be beneficial for the scientific community working on the development of Ni-MOF-based materials for electrochemical sensing and supercapacitor applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sensors for Environmental Monitoring and Food Safety—2nd Edition)
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