Science Day: Smart thin films for disease detection

Early detection of heart attacks: Discover a novel sensor that can identify cardiac biomarkers in the blood and support faster diagnosis of heart disease.

Every year, millions of people suffer from heart attacks. But what if we could detect the warning signs much earlier?
In this experiment, we're building a small and portable sensor that can recognize a special protein called cardiac troponin. This protein is released into the blood excessively when the heart muscle is damaged, making it an important biomarker of a heart attack. Our goal is to develop a smart, thin polymeric film for reliable protein detection. To do this, we'll create a smart coating that acts like a molecular fingerprint that only fits the target protein. Once the sensor is prepared, we test its functionality by measuring the electrical signals using cyclic voltammetry (CV) and square-wave voltammetry (SWV).