This semester Professor Grace Muna is taking a research sabbatical to work in Professor Lieberman's group at University of Notre Dame to develop electrochemical paper-based analytical devices that screen pharmaceutical drugs as contaminants in water samples. Muna has successfully recruited and trained IU South Bend students in her laboratory over the years, but now she lends her experience to another laboratory where she can learn a few new skills as well.
Electrochemical detection for paper analytical devices is attractive because it offers excellent attributes such as high sensitivity and selectivity while providing low detection limits of the target analyte compared to colorimetric detection. Paper-based electrochemical detection also requires inexpensive instrumentation and portable hand-held potentiostats are commercially available for on-site measurements. Both latter two features make these devices especially attractive in developing countries.
