New biosensor powers itself, detects and kills bacteria to make water safe
The biosensor uses an enzyme-based biofuel cell, antibodies called aptamers and a bacterial elimination mechanism to make water decontamination faster and easier. Originally published by Christopher McFadden at https://interestingengineering.com on Mar 02, 2025 Stock image of a biosensor. grechina/iStock A team of researchers has developed a new self-powered biosensor that can detect Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria in drinking water and destroy them in situ (on site). This discovery could have enormous ramifications for providing s afe drinking water worldwide . Traditional methods , such as culturing or polymerase chain reaction (PCR), are time-consuming and labor-intensive . They also require specialized equipment and trained sta...