Chennai: Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M) and United Kingdom have developed a paper-based sensor that can detect anti-microbial pollutants, which induce antimicrobial resistance in water bodies.
This sensor works on a ‘see and tell’ mechanism that makes it logistically effective for wide implementation, a release from IIT-M said.
It said the scientific community across the world are focused on Anti-microbial Resistance (AMR), which could possibly become a world-wide health crisis involving deadly pathogens.
‘Water bodies are the major source for the dissemination and transfer of AMR. Periodic monitoring of antimicrobial pollutants and antibiotic-resistant genes is the key to assess the current situation of AMR in India’, the release said.
In these conditions, low cost and field-deployable sensors to detect pollutants in water bodies could be a viable tool for environmental surveillance.
This research was first reported through a journal publication in Nature Scientific Reports and was acclaimed as one of the top 100 in chemistry.
This research was funded by Department of Science and Technology (DST), in bilateral collaboration with UK’s Natural Environment Research Council and Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) under the ‘Indo UK Water Quality Research Programme.’
Elaborating on the unique aspects of this research, Prof S Pushpavanam, Institute Chair Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering, IIT Madras, said, ‘Paper-based sensor offers an affordable platform for various point-of-care applications as they support fluid flow based on a wicking action and governed by capillary forces. This eliminates the requirement of a pump-to-flow liquids. We have come up with a novel method for the fabrication of paper- based devices using a commercial laser printer.
This research was funded by Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India in bilateral collaboration with UK’s Natural Environment Research Council and Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) under the ‘Indo UK Water Quality Research Programme.’