Surface Relief Gratings of Slide-Ring Hydrogels for Label-Free Biosensing

The creation of surface relief gratings using hydrogels for label-free biomolecule detection represents a significant advance in the development of versatile, cutting-edge biosensors. Central to this innovation is the formulation of materials with enhanced mechanical properties, especially for appli...

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Main Authors: Aitor Cubells-Gómez, María Isabel Lucío, María-José Bañuls, Ángel Maquieira
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-05-01
Series:Gels
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2310-2861/11/6/415
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author Aitor Cubells-Gómez
María Isabel Lucío
María-José Bañuls
Ángel Maquieira
author_facet Aitor Cubells-Gómez
María Isabel Lucío
María-José Bañuls
Ángel Maquieira
author_sort Aitor Cubells-Gómez
collection DOAJ
description The creation of surface relief gratings using hydrogels for label-free biomolecule detection represents a significant advance in the development of versatile, cutting-edge biosensors. Central to this innovation is the formulation of materials with enhanced mechanical properties, especially for applications in soft, wearable technologies. In this work, we have developed novel biofunctional hydrogels that incorporate slide-ring supramolecular structures into their network, enabling the production of surface relief gratings with superior mechanical characteristics for biomolecule detection without the need for labels. These hydrogels, functionalized with bovine serum albumin and goat anti-rabbit antibodies, demonstrated excellent selectivity and sensitivity toward anti-bovine serum albumin and rabbit IgGs in blood serum, evaluated using a label-free format. Remarkably, the new materials matched the analytical performance of conventional hydrogels based on static networks while offering dramatically improved toughness and elasticity, with a compressive modulus comparable to human skin. This demonstrates the potential of slide-ring hydrogels for fabricating robust, label-free biosensing platforms. Furthermore, the flexibility of this system allows for the incorporation of various recognition elements tailored to specific applications.
format Article
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institution OA Journals
issn 2310-2861
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publishDate 2025-05-01
publisher MDPI AG
record_format Article
series Gels
spelling doaj-art-4583d6f0d6894dac8caf76c67da3efbb2025-08-20T02:21:11ZengMDPI AGGels2310-28612025-05-0111641510.3390/gels11060415Surface Relief Gratings of Slide-Ring Hydrogels for Label-Free BiosensingAitor Cubells-Gómez0María Isabel Lucío1María-José Bañuls2Ángel Maquieira3Instituto Interuniversitario de Investigación de Reconocimiento Molecular y Desarrollo Tecnológico (IDM), Universitat Politècnica de València, Universitat de València, Camino de Vera s/n, 46022 Valencia, SpainInstituto Interuniversitario de Investigación de Reconocimiento Molecular y Desarrollo Tecnológico (IDM), Universitat Politècnica de València, Universitat de València, Camino de Vera s/n, 46022 Valencia, SpainInstituto Interuniversitario de Investigación de Reconocimiento Molecular y Desarrollo Tecnológico (IDM), Universitat Politècnica de València, Universitat de València, Camino de Vera s/n, 46022 Valencia, SpainInstituto Interuniversitario de Investigación de Reconocimiento Molecular y Desarrollo Tecnológico (IDM), Universitat Politècnica de València, Universitat de València, Camino de Vera s/n, 46022 Valencia, SpainThe creation of surface relief gratings using hydrogels for label-free biomolecule detection represents a significant advance in the development of versatile, cutting-edge biosensors. Central to this innovation is the formulation of materials with enhanced mechanical properties, especially for applications in soft, wearable technologies. In this work, we have developed novel biofunctional hydrogels that incorporate slide-ring supramolecular structures into their network, enabling the production of surface relief gratings with superior mechanical characteristics for biomolecule detection without the need for labels. These hydrogels, functionalized with bovine serum albumin and goat anti-rabbit antibodies, demonstrated excellent selectivity and sensitivity toward anti-bovine serum albumin and rabbit IgGs in blood serum, evaluated using a label-free format. Remarkably, the new materials matched the analytical performance of conventional hydrogels based on static networks while offering dramatically improved toughness and elasticity, with a compressive modulus comparable to human skin. This demonstrates the potential of slide-ring hydrogels for fabricating robust, label-free biosensing platforms. Furthermore, the flexibility of this system allows for the incorporation of various recognition elements tailored to specific applications.https://www.mdpi.com/2310-2861/11/6/415hydrogellabel freeoptical biosensingslide ringsholographysurface relief grating
spellingShingle Aitor Cubells-Gómez
María Isabel Lucío
María-José Bañuls
Ángel Maquieira
Surface Relief Gratings of Slide-Ring Hydrogels for Label-Free Biosensing
Gels
hydrogel
label free
optical biosensing
slide rings
holography
surface relief grating
title Surface Relief Gratings of Slide-Ring Hydrogels for Label-Free Biosensing
title_full Surface Relief Gratings of Slide-Ring Hydrogels for Label-Free Biosensing
title_fullStr Surface Relief Gratings of Slide-Ring Hydrogels for Label-Free Biosensing
title_full_unstemmed Surface Relief Gratings of Slide-Ring Hydrogels for Label-Free Biosensing
title_short Surface Relief Gratings of Slide-Ring Hydrogels for Label-Free Biosensing
title_sort surface relief gratings of slide ring hydrogels for label free biosensing
topic hydrogel
label free
optical biosensing
slide rings
holography
surface relief grating
url https://www.mdpi.com/2310-2861/11/6/415
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AT mariajosebanuls surfacereliefgratingsofslideringhydrogelsforlabelfreebiosensing
AT angelmaquieira surfacereliefgratingsofslideringhydrogelsforlabelfreebiosensing