Biosensing Applications for Cell Monitoring—2nd Edition

A special issue of Biosensors (ISSN 2079-6374). This special issue belongs to the section "Biosensor and Bioelectronic Devices".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2026 | Viewed by 1703

Special Issue Editor


E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Environmental Health Science, Konkuk University, Seoul 05029, Republic of Korea
Interests: bioreporter; biosensor; chemistry; pleckstrin homology domain; arsenic
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleague,

Biosensing technology has matured enormously owing to its simplicity, sensitivity, and speed compared to traditional sensing methods. Diverse biosensors have been developed across various research fields, incorporating bio-, nano-, and electrochemical technologies to monitor a wide range of targets. While early biosensors primarily focused on environmental toxicants and harmful materials, their applications have rapidly expanded to include chemicals, toxins, metabolites, and living cells. In particular, cell-based biosensing has emerged as a powerful approach in clinical and biomedical fields, enabling rapid and early detection of abnormal cells, pathogens, and disease-related biomarkers.

In this Special Issue, titled “Biosensing Applications for Cell Monitoring—2nd Edition”, we aim to explore recent advances in techniques, methodologies, and applications of biosensors for cellular monitoring, as well as their prospective uses moving forward.

The scope of this Special Issue includes, but is not limited to, the following:

By Technology:

Electrochemical biosensors (e.g., impedance spectroscopy, amperometry); optical biosensors (e.g., surface plasmon resonance, fluorescence, chemiluminescence); piezoelectric biosensors (e.g., Quartz Crystal Microbalance, QCM); field-effect transistor (FET) biosensors; microfluidic-based cell sensing; label-free biosensing; nanomaterial-enhanced biosensing (e.g., graphene, CNTs, gold nanoparticles); and biosensor arrays for multiplexed cell analysis.

By Application/Outcome:

Cell viability and proliferation; cell adhesion and migration; real-time cell monitoring; single-cell analysis; drug screening and cytotoxicity assays; point-of-care diagnostics; host–pathogen interactions; biomarker detection from cells; and cell-secreted molecules (e.g., cytokines, metabolites).

We particularly welcome submissions on emerging directions such as

- Label-free and real-time cellular monitoring;

- Single-cell analysis;

- Clinical diagnostics and point-of-care testing;

- Advanced biosensor integration with nanomaterials and microfluidics.

We look forward to receiving contributions that will help advance the field of biosensing technologies for cellular monitoring and increase their impact on clinical and translational applications.

Dr. Youngdae Yoon
Guest Editor

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 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

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

  • biosensors
  • cell monitoring
  • point-of-care
  • pathogen
  • biosensing devices
  • rapid detection
  • diagnosis

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.

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

Related Special Issue

Published Papers (2 papers)

Order results
Result details
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

18 pages, 6504 KB  
Article
Dynamic Monitoring of the Mechanical Properties of Tobacco Cells Under Salt Stress by Double Resonator Piezoelectric Cytometry
by Taomin Zhou, Tiean Zhou, Zhicheng Kong, Chengfang Tan and Weisong Pan
Biosensors 2026, 16(4), 227; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios16040227 - 20 Apr 2026
Viewed by 440
Abstract
Soil salinity is a major abiotic stressor that constrains plant growth and development, yet the coordinated regulatory mechanisms underlying salt stress impacts on plant cell mechanical properties and the cytoskeleton remain elusive. In this study, tobacco suspension cells were employed as a model [...] Read more.
Soil salinity is a major abiotic stressor that constrains plant growth and development, yet the coordinated regulatory mechanisms underlying salt stress impacts on plant cell mechanical properties and the cytoskeleton remain elusive. In this study, tobacco suspension cells were employed as a model system. Combining mechanical measurements, fluorescence microscopy imaging, and bright-field morphological observation, we systematically characterized the dynamic response patterns of cell-generated surface stress (ΔS), cell viscoelastic index (CVI), microfilament cytoskeleton structure, as well as cell morphology and plasmolysis under NaCl stress ranging from 50 to 150 mmol/L. The results revealed three distinct response thresholds: 50 mmol/L NaCl treatment induced only transient ΔS fluctuations and mild plasmolysis, with no significant changes in CVI or microfilament fluorescence intensity, suggesting a safe tolerance threshold. The 75–100 mmol/L NaCl treatments triggered reversible “rise–recovery” mechanical responses in ΔS and CVI. The microfilament cytoskeleton showed minor structural adjustments, and plasmolysis increased gradually but remained reversible, defining this range as a reversible acclimation phase. The 125–150 mmol/L NaCl treatment caused an irreversible decline in ΔS (with a sharp instantaneous drop at 150 mmol/L). CVI variations diminished and stabilized after 6 h. The microfilament cytoskeleton suffered progressive disruption, as fluorescence intensity dropped to 1% of the control group at 150 mmol/L, accompanied by severe plasmolysis and protoplast shrinkage, indicating irreversible cellular damage. These findings demonstrate a concentration-dependent gradient effect of NaCl stress, highlighting tight coordination between mechanical properties, cytoskeletal integrity, and morphological adaptation. This work provides critical cytological insights into the molecular regulation of plant salt stress responses. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biosensing Applications for Cell Monitoring—2nd Edition)
Show Figures

Figure 1

10 pages, 1501 KB  
Communication
Magnetic Detection of Cancer Cells Using Tumor-Homing Peptide-Modified Magnetic Nanoparticles
by Shengli Zhou, Yuji Furutani, Kei Yamashita, Sakuya Kako, Kazunori Watanabe, Toshihiko Kiwa and Takashi Ohtsuki
Biosensors 2026, 16(1), 45; https://doi.org/10.3390/bios16010045 - 5 Jan 2026
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 995
Abstract
Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) provide a platform for target detection because of their magnetic responsiveness to alternating magnetic fields (AMFs). We developed a detection method using MNPs modified with tumor-homing peptides (THPs), PL1 and PL3, which selectively bind to protein components enriched in malignant [...] Read more.
Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) provide a platform for target detection because of their magnetic responsiveness to alternating magnetic fields (AMFs). We developed a detection method using MNPs modified with tumor-homing peptides (THPs), PL1 and PL3, which selectively bind to protein components enriched in malignant tissues. THP-MNPs were synthesized using maleimide-PEG-NHS linkers and characterized using transmission electron microscopy. Human glioblastoma cancer U87MG and normal tissue-derived HEK293 cells were incubated with THP-MNPs, and the magnetic signals were measured using a high-temperature superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) magnetometer under an AMF (1.06 kHz). Dark-field microscopy confirmed the preferential binding of THP-MNPs to U87MG cells. In the absence of cells, THP-MNPs exhibited AMF-dependent signal enhancement, which correlated with particle size reduction due to THP release. This increase was completely suppressed in the presence of U87MG cells, indicating a strong THP-mediated interaction. PL3-MNPs exhibited superior discrimination between malignant and non-malignant cells. These results demonstrate that SQUID-based magnetic measurements using THP-MNPs enable rapid and label-free cancer cell detection. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biosensing Applications for Cell Monitoring—2nd Edition)
Show Figures

Figure 1

Back to TopTop