Researchers at the BRIC-Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology (BRIC-RGCB) here have developed a nanopore-based sensing technology that could pave the way for early detection and monitoring of biomarkers linked to neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

A research team led by Mahendran K.R., with contributions from PhD student Varsha Shaji and postdoctoral researcher Neethu Puthumadathil, designed the ‘self-assembling dual-diameter’ nanopore sensors that are capable of detecting such biomarkers with high sensitivity, the RGCB said in a statement.

The research published in Nature Nanotechnology represents a significant advance in nanoscience and biomolecular sensing, the RGCB said.

Biomarkers are indicators of diseases that can be used for early detection. Nanopores are extremely small hollow structures. Detecting biomarkers at an early stage using conventional techniques, however, remains challenging as many of these biomarkers occur at extremely low concentrations.

“In the new approach, the researchers designed short peptides that form pores of varying sizes, providing a versatile platform for sensing biomolecules with different shapes and dimensions. The sensors distinguish disease and non-disease-associated forms of the biomarkers, even when they were present in complex protein mixtures at very low concentrations,” according to the RGCB.

In future, these sensors can be used to develop point-of-care devices that detect biomarkers associated with various diseases, such as cancer, directly from biological fluids, including blood, the institute said.

Early and accurate detection remains a major challenge in managing neurodegenerative diseases, BRIC-RGCB director Beena Pillai said. “The nanopore sensor platform demonstrates how advances in nanotechnology and biotechnology can come together to address a critical unmet need in health care,” she said.

The work was carried out in collaboration with Ulrich Kleinekathöfer’s group at Constructor University, Germany, and Krishnananda Chattopadhyay’s group at CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Biology (CSIR-IICB), Kolkata. The study was supported by grants from the Department of Biotechnology, the Department of Science and Technology, the Indian Council of Medical Research and the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research.