Using biosensors to detect disease, pain, pollution and weapons

Air pollution, chemical weapons, diseases, drugs and signs of life on other planets — all can be detected with biosensors.

The development of high tech to do this job — when canines or conventional tests aren’t practical — is a field that spurred NJIT’s Omowunmi Sadik into action.

Case in point: Sadik created a sensor that detects the novel coronavirus using the power of a smartphone — "So simple it can be 3D-printed by undergraduates," she explained — and there are even biosensors that can measure pain. The latter are especially useful for those who can't accurately communicate due to age or health.

Sadik, a distinguished professor of chemistry and environmental science, leads NJIT's BioSMART Center and is a fellow of the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering, Royal Society of Chemistry and African Academy of Sciences.

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