Researchers from City University of Hong Kong (CityU) received four awards, including two Gold Medals and two Silver Medals at the 47th International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva, held in Switzerland.
“Point of Care Devices – from Food Safety to Non-Invasive Early Cancer Detection”, developed by Dr Roy Vellaisamy, Associate Professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, who is also a member of State Key Laboratory of Terahertz and Millimeter Waves, and Professor Michael Lam Hon-wah, from the Department of Chemistry, and their research team, received the Gold Medal.
Approximately 1% of the global population suffers from biogenic amines intolerance. Biogenic amines can be found when bacteria grow in food, so the existence of biogenic amines is one of the indicators of food decay. However, conventional tests for biogenic amines take about one day in a laboratory, and most people do not have access to affordable onsite testing devices. In addition, there are about 30,000 deaths related to prostate cancer (PCa) a year globally, but the 5-year relative survival rate for PCa patients is nearly 100% if diagnosed at the localised stage.
The new system developed by the CityU research team was originally designed for the detection of contaminants in food with concentrations of less than 0.2ppm (parts per million). It contains a nanosensor that prescreens food samples on the spot, using a mobile phone, and identifies the presence of biogenic amines and formaldehyde in 10 to 25 minutes.
The research team went a step further by modifying the point-of-care sensing platform to detect cancer biomarkers, such as conducting non-invasive urine tests to screen for prostate cancer biomarkers. This approach helps increase the survival rate of PCa patients, as early detection is crucial for increasing the chance of successful treatment.
Other members of the research team included Dr Shishir Venkatesh and Mr Chi-chung Yeung.
The 47th International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva, which was held from 10 to 14 April, 2019 in Switzerland, is one of the biggest global events showcasing innovations and inventions from around the world.
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