Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, Jul 24: Scientists at the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Calicut have developed a breakthrough point-of-care diagnostic device capable of rapidly detecting sepsis, a life-threatening condition caused by infection, often leading to organ failure or death.

The new device features a highly sensitive and affordable electrochemical biosensor designed to identify endotoxins — toxic molecules found in the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria, which serve as key indicators of sepsis.

Led by Professor N. Sandhyarani, the research team created eight different sensor designs, including seven based on electrochemical detection and one on optical detection. Their findings, published in the journal Langmuir, showcase a portable sensor chip capable of selectively identifying lipopolysaccharide (LPS), an endotoxin biomarker, with high accuracy and speed.

The device successfully detected endotoxins in complex samples like whole blood, insulin formulations, and fruit juices with less than 2% error using the standard addition method.

Two of the electrochemical platforms also showed strong performance in identifying E. coli in water samples — matching the accuracy of traditional biological methods while significantly reducing test time. This could make the device valuable not just for medical diagnostics but also for water quality monitoring.

The portable prototype delivers results within 10 minutes, making it a promising tool for real-time, on-site detection — especially critical for early diagnosis of sepsis and improved treatment outcomes.