Nowadays, it is well known that sensors have an enormous impact on our life, using streams of data to make life-changing decisions. Every single aspect of our day is monitored via thousands of sensors, and the benefits we can obtain are enormous. With the increasing demand for food quality, food safety has become one of the main focuses of our society. However, fresh foods are subject to spoilage due to the action of microorganisms, enzymes, and oxidation during storage. Nanotechnology can be applied in the food industry to support packaged products and extend their shelf life. Chemical composition and sensory attributes are quality markers which require innovative assessment methods, as existing ones are rather difficult to implement, labour-intensive, and expensive. E-sensing devices, such as vision systems, electronic noses, and electronic tongues, overcome many of these drawbacks. Nanotechnology holds great promise to provide benefits not just within food products but also around food products. In fact, nanotechnology introduces new chances for innovation in the food industry at immense speed. This review describes the food application fields of nanotechnologies; in particular, metal oxide sensors (MOS) will be presented.

Lab-on-a-chip (LOC) systems are miniaturized devices aimed to perform one or several analyses, normally carried out in a laboratory setting, on a single chip. LOC systems have a wide application range, including diagnosis and clinical biochemistry. In a clinical setting, LOC systems can be associated with the Point-of-Care Testing (POCT) definition. POCT circumvents several steps in central laboratory testing, including specimen transportation and processing, resulting in a faster turnaround time. Provider access to rapid test results allows for prompt medical decision making, which can lead to improved patient outcomes, operational efficiencies, patient satisfaction, and even cost savings. These features are particularly attractive for healthcare settings dealing with complicated patients, such as those affected by chronic kidney disease (CKD). CKD is a pathological condition characterized by progressive and irreversible structural or functional kidney impairment lasting for more than three months. The disease displays an unavoidable tendency to progress to End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD), thus requiring renal replacement therapy, usually dialysis, and transplant. Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the major cause of death in CKD, with a cardiovascular risk ten times higher in these patients than the rate observed in healthy subjects. The gradual decline of the kidney leads to the accumulation of uremic solutes, with negative effect on organs, especially on the cardiovascular system. The possibility to monitor CKD patients by using non-invasive and low-cost approaches could give advantages both to the patient outcome and sanitary costs. Despite their numerous advantages, POCT application in CKD management is not very common, even if a number of devices aimed at monitoring the CKD have been demonstrated worldwide at the lab scale by basic studies (low Technology Readiness Level, TRL). The reasons are related to both technological and clinical aspects. In this review, the main technologies for the design of LOCs are reported, as well as the available POCT devices for CKD monitoring, with a special focus on the most recent reliable applications in this field. Moreover, the current challenges in design and applications of LOCs in the clinical setting are briefly discussed.

The global COVID-19 pandemic has had severe consequences from the social and economic perspectives, compelling the scientific community to focus on the development of effective diagnostics that can combine a fast response and accurate sensitivity/specificity performance. Presently available commercial antigen-detecting rapid diagnostic tests (Ag-RDTs) are very fast, but still face significant criticisms, mainly related to their inability to amplify the protein signal. This translates to a limited sensitive outcome and, hence, a reduced ability to hamper the spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection. To answer the urgent need for novel platforms for the early, specific and highly sensitive detection of the virus, this paper deals with the use of organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs) as very efficient ion–electron converters and amplifiers for the detection of spike proteins and their femtomolar concentration. The electrical response of the investigated OECTs was carefully analyzed, and the changes in the parameters associated with the transconductance (i.e., the slope of the transfer curves) in the gate voltage range between 0 and 0.3 V were found to be more clearly correlated with the spike protein concentration. Moreover, the functionalization of OECT-based biosensors with anti-spike and anti-nucleocapside proteins, the major proteins involved in the disease, demonstrated the specificity of these devices, whose potentialities should also be considered in light of the recent upsurge of the so-called “long COVID” syndrome.

Beer is the most consumed alcoholic beverage; with 177.5 million kiloliters produced every year, it is one of the most relevant food products. Diacetyl is a typical byproduct of yeast metabolism that is formed during the fermentation inside breweries. The perception of this high volatile and butter-like flavor molecule varies according to the kind of beer, from a positive and highly sought characteristic to a characteristic that is avoided. Furthermore, its toxicity when inhaled has been proven. Typical diacetyl analysis includes voltametric detection and chromatographic analysis techniques. Using metal oxide sensors (MOS), this analysis can become fast and cost-effective, evaluating the differences in diacetyl concentrations through resistance variation. The S3+ (Nano Sensor Systems s.r.l.; Reggio Emilia, Italy; device can recognize volatile compounds through a tailormade array of different materials. The results can be shown on a PCA that is directly generated by the instruments and can be used to manage the productive process through an IoT integrated system. Testing different beer typology through electrochemical sensors allows for the validation of this new approach for diacetyl evaluation. The results have shown an excellent ability to detect diacetyl in different beer samples, perfectly discriminating among different concentrations.

In a world characterized by rapid industrialization and a growing population, plastic or polymeric waste handling has undergone significant transformations. Recycling has become a major strategy where silk sericin has great potential among recyclable polymers. This naturally occurring biopolymer is a sustainable and versatile material with a wide range of potential uses in biotechnology and sensing. Furthermore, preparing and studying new environmentally friendly functional polymers with attractive physicochemical properties can open new opportunities for developing next-generation materials and composites. Herein, we provide an overview of the advances in the research studies of silk sericin as a functional and eco-friendly material, considering its biocompatibility and unique physicochemical properties. The structure of silk sericin and the extraction procedures, considering the influence of preparation methods on its properties, are described. Sericin’s intrinsic properties, including its ability to crosslink with other polymers, its antioxidative capacity, and its biocompatibility, render it a versatile material for multifunctional applications across diverse fields. In biotechnology, the ability to blend sericin with other polymers enables the preparation of materials with varied morphologies, such as films and scaffolds, exhibiting enhanced mechanical strength and anti-inflammatory effects. This combination proves particularly advantageous in tissue engineering and wound healing. Furthermore, the augmentation of mechanical strength, coupled with the incorporation of plasticizers, makes sericin films suitable for the development of epidermal electrodes. Simultaneously, by precisely controlling hydration and permeability, the same material can be tailored for applications in packaging and the food industry. This work highlights the multidisciplinary and multifunctional nature of sericin, emphasizing its broad applicability.

In a world characterized by rapid industrialization and a growing population, plastic or polymeric waste handling has undergone significant transformations. Recycling has become a major strategy where silk sericin has great potential among recyclable polymers. This naturally occurring biopolymer is a sustainable and versatile material with a wide range of potential uses in biotechnology and sensing. Furthermore, preparing and studying new environmentally friendly functional polymers with attractive physicochemical properties can open new opportunities for developing next-generation materials and composites. Herein, we provide an overview of the advances in the research studies of silk sericin as a functional and eco-friendly material, considering its biocompatibility and unique physicochemical properties. The structure of silk sericin and the extraction procedures, considering the influence of preparation methods on its properties, are described. Sericin’s intrinsic properties, including its ability to cross-link with other polymers, its antioxidative capacity, and its biocompatibility, render it a versatile material for multifunctional applications across diverse fields. In biotechnology, the ability to blend sericin with other polymers enables the preparation of materials with varied morphologies, such as films and scaffolds, exhibiting enhanced mechanical strength and anti-inflammatory effects. This combination proves particularly advantageous in tissue engineering and wound healing. Furthermore, the augmentation of mechanical strength, coupled with the incorporation of plasticizers, makes sericin films suitable for the development of epidermal electrodes. Simultaneously, by precisely controlling hydration and permeability, the same material can be tailored for applications in packaging and the food industry. This work highlights the multidisciplinary and multifunctional nature of sericin, emphasizing its broad applicability .