Since the discovery of the two-dimensional (2D) carbon material, graphene, just over a decade ago, the development of graphene-based field effect transistors (G-FETs) has become a widely researched area, particularly for use in point-of-care biomedical applications. G-FETs are particularly attractive as next generation bioelectronics due to their mass-scalability and low cost of the technology’s manufacture. Furthermore, G-FETs offer the potential to complete label-free, rapid, and highly sensitive analysis coupled with a high sample throughput. These properties, coupled with the potential for integration into portable instrumentation, contribute to G-FETs’ suitability for point-of-care diagnostics. This review focuses on elucidating the recent developments in the field of G-FET sensors that act on a bioaffinity basis, whereby a binding event between a bioreceptor and the target analyte is transduced into an electrical signal at the G-FET surface. Recognizing and quantifying these target analytes accurately and reliably is essential in diagnosing many diseases, therefore it is vital to design the G-FET with care. Taking into account some limitations of the sensor platform, such as Debye–Hükel screening and device surface area, is fundamental in developing improved bioelectronics for applications in the clinical setting. This review highlights some efforts undertaken in facing these limitations in order to bring G-FET development for biomedical applications forward.

Graphene has many superlative thermal, electrical and mechanical properties. However, the thermoelectric performance of graphene is limited by its high thermal conductivity and small Seebeck coefficient. To address this problem, monolayer and bilayer MoSSe nanoribbons together with graphene/MoSSe heterostructures have been investigated in this work. The electron and phonon transport, and the thermoelectric properties of the monolayer and bilayer MoSSe nanoribbons, together with the graphene/MoSSe heterostructures, have been analyzed by first-principles methods in conjunction with non-equilibrium Green's function and the Landauer equation. The results indicate that figure of merit (ZT) values of 2.01 and 1.64 can be achieved for graphene/SeMoS stacked nanoribbons and symmetric armchair MoSSe nanoribbons respectively at 300 K, which are much higher than the ZT value of prime graphene (ZT ∼ 0.05). The maximum ZT values of these structures increase at T < 350 K, while the maximum ZT decreases at high temperatures (T > 350 K). However, the maximum ZT values of the symmetric armchair MoSSe nanoribbons show an increase with temperatures up to 550 K. From our analysis, phonon thermal conductivity and temperature are key factors determining the ZT values in MoSSe nanoribbons. The significantly enhanced ZT values make graphene/SeMoS stacking nanoribbons and symmetric armchair MoSSe nanoribbons promising candidates for application in thermoelectric devices.

Development of ultra-thin polymer layer modified screen printed graphene electrodes with high conductivity for higher-sensitivity detection of Aβ(1–42) peptides with the lowest LOD of 1.4 pg mL ⁻¹ is presented.

Individual athletes, coaches and sports teams seek continuously for ways to improve performance and accomplishment in elite competition. New techniques of performance analysis are a crucial part of the drive for athletic perfection. This paper discusses the ethical importance of one aspect of the future potential of performance analysis in sport, combining the field of biomedicine, sports engineering and nanotechnology in the form of ‘Nanobiosensors’. This innovative technology has the potential to revolutionise sport, enabling real time biological data to be collected from athletes that can be electronically distributed. Enabling precise real time performance analysis is not without ethical problems. Arguments concerning (1) data ownership and privacy; (2) data confidentiality; and (3) athlete welfare are presented alongside a discussion of the use of the Precautionary Principle in making ethical evaluations. We conclude, that although the future potential use of Nanobiosensors in sports analysis offers many potential benefits, there is also a fear that it could be abused at a sporting system level. Hence, it is essential for sporting bodies to consider the development of a robust ethically informed governance framework in advance of their proliferated use.

A chromium-containing metal-organic framework (MOF), MIL-101 (Chromium(III) benzene-1,4-dicarboxylate), was used to catalyze the one pot, three component synthesis of some 2,4,5-trisubstituted imidazoles under solvent-free conditions. The advantages of using this heterogeneous catalyst include short reaction time, high yields, easy and quick isolation of catalyst and products, low amount of catalyst needed, and that the addition of solvent, salt, and additives are not needed. This catalyst is highly efficient and can be recovered at least 5 times with a slight loss of efficiency. The structure of the metal-organic frameworks (MOF) was confirmed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM). Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (HNMR) were performed to confirm some of the synthesized products. Experimental data indicated that the optimum amount of catalyst was 5 mg for benzil (1 mmol), 4-chlorobenzaldehyde (1 mmol), and ammonium acetate (2.5 mmol), and the synthetic route to the various imidazoles is performed in 10 min by 95% yield, an acceptable result rivalling those of other catalysts.