Affordable Colorimetric Biosensor for Food and Water Safety

This project seeks to translate a granted patent on a colorimetric nanocomposite-based biosensor for the rapid detection of Salmonella typhimurium and Escherichia coli into an affordable, accessible diagnostic product for food and water safety. The technology uses TTC-functionalized iron oxide–gold nanocomposites to enable simple visual detection without sophisticated equipment, making it suitable for low-resource and field settings.

Through MSCA Staff Exchanges, the project aims to support prototype optimisation, validation, and scale-up, while fostering intersectoral collaboration between academia, microbiology laboratories, and industry partners. Staff mobility will enable skills transfer in biosensor development, product design, and translational research, accelerating the pathway from laboratory innovation to real-world application.

The long-term goal is to deliver a low-cost, user-friendly diagnostic tool with strong potential for public health impact, particularly in regions with limited access to conventional testing infrastructure.