article · ECS Sensors Plus
Diabetes affects hundreds of millions of people globally, driving demand for low-cost point-of-care diagnostic tools. Three-dimensional printing offers an accessible, affordable route for mass-producing carbon electrodes used directly or modified for specific sensing needs. A copper-modified, 3D printed carbon electrode serves as a selective, sensitive, nonenzymatic glucose sensor. Combining copper deposition with an optimised activation protocol produces superior sensitivity, a broader detection range, and enhanced reproducibility compared to non-activated or alkaline-immersed alternatives. The resulting sensor exhibits linear performance across concentrations ranging from 10 to 1800 micromolar while resisting common biological interferants. Tested on human saliva samples, the sensor reliably measured biologically relevant glucose levels, yielding recovery rates of roughly 98 to 106 percent across tested concentrations. This demonstrates the viability of modified 3D printed electrodes for non-invasive diagnostic sampling.
Non-invasive monitoring of glucose through saliva provides an attractive alternative to conventional blood sampling for diabetes management. By coupling nonenzymatic detection with 3D printed electrodes, this approach addresses the need for affordable, mass-producible diagnostic tools that can reliably detect relevant concentrations without suffering interference from other biological compounds found in human fluids.
This technology could enable low-cost, point-of-care saliva testing devices for diabetic screening and monitoring. Potential users include healthcare clinics and individuals requiring frequent glucose checks. The sensor is applied and tested in real human saliva samples, indicating a functioning laboratory prototype, though further engineering into a packaged product and clinical validation would be required before real-world adoption.
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One of the most prevalent diseases where point-of-care (POC) diagnostics has focused is diabetes, which impacts hundreds of millions of people globally. Due to the severe negative outcomes including renal failure, nerve damage, and stroke, many POC sensors have been designed to streamline low-cost testing. Recently, the utility of 3D printing for rapidly fabricating housings, electrodes, and sensors for use at the POC has been exploited toward diverse applications. Particularly interesting are 3D printed carbon electrodes (3DpCEs) in POC diagnostics owing to their simplicity, affordability, and mass production capabilities for developing sensors either for direct use or through post-printing surface modifications. Herein, we report a copper modified 3DpCE as a sensitive and selective nonenzymatic biosensor for glucose. Copper deposition, paired with an optimized activation protocol, produced a sensitive and selective sensor for glucose with a larger detection range, enhanced sensitivity, and better reproducibility compared to nonactivated and alkaline immersed 3DpCEs. The sensor displayed excellent linearity between 10–1800 μ M and proved to be highly selective over common biologically relevant interferants. The 3D printed sensor successfully determined biologically relevant concentrations of glucose in human saliva which resulted in percent recoveries of 101 ± 8%, 106 ± 6%, and 98 ± 6% for 74, 402, and 652 μ M glucose, respectively.
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DOI: 10.1149/2754-2726/ad3a58
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