Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Comment
  • Published:

Towards the next generation of nanobiosensors

Nature Nanotechnology volume 20, pages 1346–1349 (2025)Cite this article

Subjects

Since the term nanobiosensor first emerged over three decades ago, the field has witnessed an explosion of groundbreaking research. Thanks to the development of advanced nanomaterials and nanotechnologies, combined with decades of expertise in biosensing, a wide range of innovative and improved nanobiosensors have been reported, but many challenges remain. For this technology to truly meet real-world needs — particularly in global health and related applications — further efforts are needed to improve performance, useability, scalability and cost-effectiveness.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on SpringerLink
  • Instant access to the full article PDF.

USD 39.95

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Fig. 1: Nanobiosensor designs making use of nanomaterials and nanostructures.
Fig. 2: Future trends in nanobiosensor research, design and applications.

References

  1. Turner, A. P. F. Chem. Soc. Rev. 42, 3184–3196 (2013).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Howes, P. D., Chandrawati, R. & Stevens, M. M. Science 17, 5–16 (2022).

    Google Scholar 

  3. Reynolds, R. A., Mirkin, C. & Letsinger, R. L. Pure Appl. Chem. 72, 229–235 (2000).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Parolo, C. et al. Nat. Protocols 15, 3788–3816 (2020).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Mirkin, M. C. Inorg. Chem. 39, 2258–2272 (2000).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Han, M., Gao, X., Su, J. Z. & Nie, S. Nat. Biotechnol. 19, 631–635 (2001).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Morales-Narváez, E. & Merkoçi, A. Adv. Mater. 24, 3298–3308 (2012).

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Morales-Narváez, E., Baptista-Pires, L., Zamora-Gálvez, A. & Merkoçi, A. Adv. Mater. 29, 1604905 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Wang, W., Liu, G. & Merkoçi, A. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 125, 3214–3215 (2023).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Altug, H., Oh, S.-H., Maier, S. A. & Homola, J. Nat. Nanotechnol. 17, 5–16 (2022).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Sena-Torralba, A., Álvarez-Diduk, R., Parolo, C., Piper, A. & Merkoçi, A. Chem. Rev. 122, 14881–14910 (2022).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  12. Wang, L., Sofer, Z. & Pumera, M. ACS Nano 14, 21–25 (2020).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Huang, Z. et al. Acc. Mater. Res. 5, 438–452 (2024).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Ghouneimy, A., Mahas, A., Marsic, T., Aman, R. & Mahfouz, M. ACS Synth. Biol. 12, 1–16 (2023).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Aslam, N. et al. Nat. Rev. Phys. 5, 157–169 (2023).

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  16. Wang, M. et al. Nat. Mater. 24, 589–598 (2025).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The ICN2 is funded by the CERCA programme/Generalitat de Catalunya. The ICN2 is supported by the Severo Ochoa Centres of Excellence programme (grant CEX2021-001214-S), funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039.501100011033. The Departament de Recerca i Universitats of Generalitat de Catalunya is also acknowledged (grant 2021 SGR 01464).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2), CSIC and The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Bellaterra, Barcelona, Spain

    Arben Merkoçi

  2. ICREA, Barcelona, Spain

    Arben Merkoçi

Authors
  1. Arben Merkoçi
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Arben Merkoçi.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The author declares no competing interests.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Merkoçi, A. Towards the next generation of nanobiosensors. Nat. Nanotechnol. 20, 1346–1349 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-025-02038-4

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Version of record:

  • Issue date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-025-02038-4

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing