The enzyme we needed to place in the sensor is very sensitive to oxygen, thus very complicated to use in an open environment, such as any agricultural field.
So we had to create a way to protect the enzyme without compromising the measurement - which was never done before.
And we nailed it, supported by the Redox Shields Project.
As part of the ERC Proof-of-Concept Grant LiveSen, our group was able to put all necessary parts into a small electrochemical biosensor. Now farmers are able to measure nitrate in their plants directly on the field!
Foto: Food Hub NRW
The EU-funded eCONFIDENCE project aimed to explore potential commercial applications of a multisensory test strip, as well as the oxygen binders needed for it, patented under the European Research Council Starting Grant "REDOX SHIELDS". Such multi-analyte test strips can be used to calibrate the millions of data points generated every day by wearable technologies, improving the accuracy of non-invasive sensors in Big Data applications for health and fitness. We continued to improve the biosensor, also for health applications!
After publishing outstanding papers and patenting the technology behind the biosensor, we were able to secure a EXIST Research Transfer funding, taking a step closer to the market.
Within EXIST, the sensor has achieved TRL 6, ready to be tested by first clients.