Microarray-based chemical sensors and biosensors: Fundamentals and food safety applications

The advent of chemical sensors and biosensors has drawn tremendous attention particularly in the inspection of food quality. Array-based sensors take advantage of the integration of multiple recognition elements on a single microdetector, and the ability to recognize a myriad of molecular targets from complex samples. With the continuous advancement in lab-on-a-chip technology, microfluidic-based techniques have enabled rapid and portable monitoring of multiple nutritional or harmful substances that provide high sensitivity, high throughput, and low sample consumption. In this article, the latest progress in array-based chemical sensors and biosensors is carefully reviewed. Several major chemometric methods for handling high-dimensional data, including hierarchical cluster analysis, principal component analysis, and support vector machine, are introduced and commented of reference to their use primarily in the detection of foodborne hazardous species or contaminants. Finally, special insights are given into the development of miniaturized, sensitive, and selective sensors as the next generation of point-of-care tools.