The biosensor works in a similar way to glucose test strips, but senior researcher Dr. Saimon Moraes Silva said it was much more sensitive, detecting microRNAs in blood plasma at ultra-low concentrations that are up to a trillion times lower than glucose.

“MicroRNAs provide early clues about health and diseases like cancer but they can be difficult to detect even using standard laboratory methods like PCR tests because they are often present in tiny amounts in blood, plasma, and saliva,” Dr. Silva said.

Lead researcher and Ph.D. candidate Vatsala Pithaih said the team’s key breakthrough came from a specialized enzyme that amplified the biosensor test strip’s response.