Development of Electrochemical Sensors for Candida Albicans Diagnos

The goal of this project is to develop a rapid diagnostic platform for candida albicans test in clinical use. The cell wall of candida albicans will be dissolved by hemicellulose and broken down to D-galactose. Through amperometric electrochemical sensor, the D-galactose concentration can be quantitatively carried out that is related to candida albicans concentration. The pyrroloquinolinequinone-dehydrogenase (PQQ-GDH), which is enzyme of D-galactose, will be used to accelerate D-galactose redox and oxidation during the electrochemical sensing process, and Fe2+ and Fe3+ will be used to amplify the current signal. In this proposal, we provided the preliminary data to prove the concept of the candida albicans diagnosis by using electrochemical sensors with PQQ-GDH enzyme. Following, we will take three years to develop and to evaluate the diagnostic platform for candida albicans diagnosis in clinical use. First year, the amperometric electrochemical strips will be developed and tested by using lab-cultured candida albicans. The results will also compare to the results measuring by commercial amperometric electrochemical chips. Second year, we will also develop a voltage-fixed amperometeric system for electrochemical strips measuring. Furthermore, the lab-cultured candida albicans will be mixed into human urine to mimic the disease of Mould sex urethritis, which results from number of candida albicans unreasonable increase in urethra. We will also cooperate with Urologist to collect the clinical samples for clinical testing. Third year, we will keep collect the clinical samples through Urologist, as well as through Gynecologist. In the future, the electrochemical strips and systems for candida albicans diagnosis will be developed in a reasonable price for point-of-care as glucose meter.