Nowadays, the development of new technological solutions in the medical field, in particular biosensors, is a priority and a ground for great scientific and financial investment. From glucose sensors to highly sensible and more precise molecular tools, this biotechnological field has gone through an exponential growth, but still the applications are very limited to the future potential foreseen in the medical area. In the last decade, the advances in the genomic field have permitted the identification of specific biomarkers related to certain diseases, becoming one of the main approaches used in clinical diagnosis. Biomarkers have different clinical values, in the sense that they may provide preventive, predictive, prognostic and therapeutic response related information, not being exclusively used for diagnostic purposes, but also be applied in health management and disease treatment. Therefore, biomarkers allied with biosensors have the potential to revolutionize the way healthcare is managed. The vast choice of bioreceptors such as nucleic acids, antibodies, antigens, enzymes and even whole cells, consents the diagnosis of diseases ranging from viral and bacterial infections to cancer and metabolism disorders. The major appeal of these sensing platforms is that it provides a fast, cost-effective, reliable, highly sensitive and easy way to obtain an earlier clinical diagnosis, which can significantly affect the survival rate or patient's prognosis. This review will explore some of the most recent devices available and its clinical applications.

Freshwater disinfection using photolytic and catalytic activation of peroxymonosulphate (PMS) through PMS/UV-A LED and PMS/Mn+/UV-A LED [Mn+ = Fe2+ or Co2+] processes was evaluated through the inactivation of three different bacteria: Escherichia coli (Gram-negative), Bacillus mycoides (sporulated Gram-positive), Staphylococcus aureus (non-sporulated Gram-positive), and the fungus Candida albicans. Photolytic and catalytic activation of PMS were effective in the total inactivation of the bacteria using 0.1 mM of PMS and Mn+ at neutral pH (6.5), with E. coli reaching the highest and the fastest inactivation yield, followed by S. aureus and B. mycoides. With B. mycoides, the oxidative stress generated through the complexity of PMS/Mn+/UV-A LED combined treatments triggered the formation of endospores. The treatment processes were also effective in the total inactivation of C. albicans, although, due to the ultrastructure, biochemistry and physiology of this yeast, higher dosages of reagents (5 mM of PMS and 2.5 mM of Mn+) were required. The rate of microbial inactivation markedly increased through catalytic activation of PMS particularly during the first 60 s of treatment. Co2+ was more effective than Fe2+ to catalyse PMS decomposition to sulphate radicals for the inactivation of S. aureus and C. albicans. The inactivation of the four microorganisms was well represented by the Hom model. The Biphasic and the Double Weibull models, which are based on the existence of two microbial sub-populations exhibiting different resistance to the treatments, also fitted the experimental results of photolytic activation of PMS.