Near field communication-assisted paper-based electrochemical sensing platform for study in personalized nutrition

Precision medicine has paved the way for a new approach to tackling diseases, boosting the customized cure for reliable and effective disease managment. Besides precision medicine, there has been recently substantial and growing interest in precision nutrition, considering the effect of food intake on human metabolism. Customizing the meals requires multiple, timely, and on-site analyses for a comprehensive study of the effect on the metabolic pathways. Aiming to address this need, we reported for the first time a paper-based sensing tool for evaluating the post-prandial oxidative stress analyzing Mediterranean and Western diet meals, by detecting hydrogen peroxide and redox potential in capillary blood. Herein, NFC-assisted electrochemical sensors printed on office paper and modified by drop casting with carbon black/Prussian Blue nanoparticles for hydrogen peroxide detection (LOD = 0.3 µM) and with carbon black for the redox potential measurement were developed. Considering the tricky target biomarkers, i.e. hydrogen peroxide and redox potential, and the low volume matrix, i.e. capillary blood, the suitability of these sensors was assessed in a clinical study by analyzing additional biomarkers namely malondialdehyde, cortisol, and glucose in healthy people before and after Mediterranean and Western diet meals. The data obtained with the sensors were found in agreement with the biomarkers analyzed by established analytical methods, demonstrating the easiness and reliability of the electrochemical paper-based sensors as sustainable, easy to use, and useful devices for studies in the precision nutrition sector, opening a new application route of electrochemical paper-based devices.