TRENDS IN BIOSENSOR RESEARCH-AND-DEVELOPMENT

Trends in biosensor research and development are described. Micromachining techniques have been applied to construct biosensor systems. Several detection units for flow injection analysis have been fabricated. An electrochemical flow cell was fabricated, and both an enzyme immobilized column and an electrochemical detector were integrated. A chemiluminescence detector was also fabricated. Biosensor systems for clinical analyses in the toilet have been developed. A quartz crystal oscillator was used for protein detection, and a thermistor was employed as a ther-mal detector resulting from the enzyme reaction. An injectable biosensor for rapid measurement has been developed, and the determination of sugars in fruits was carried out. Glucose oxidase was immobilized for the determination of glucose, and three enzymes, invertase, mutarotase and glucose oxidase, were immobilized for the sucrose sensor. Microbiosensors using carbon fiber microelectrodes have been applied to neuroscience. Micro acetylcholine sensors based on acetylcholine esterase and choline oxidase were fabricated and characterized. Micro glutamate sensors were also fabricated using platinized carbon fiber electrodes which were modified with glutamate oxidase. The micro glutamate sensor was applied to the detection of glutamate released from the neurons.