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The chip will detect changes in your genes and alert your cell phone
Last reviewed: 02.07.2025
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A team of bioengineers from California has presented a new device capable of detecting changes in DNA. The device is a graphene chip and, according to the head of the research project, Ratnesh Lal, it can be useful in the medical field. Scientists note that the chip will help detect viruses, bacteria, cancerous tumors at early stages using blood tests, etc.
According to Professor Lal, his group's discovery may become a real breakthrough and effective digital methods for identifying various changes in the DNA chain may appear in the near future based on the chip. The unique development of Californian specialists may become the basis for developing biosensor chips implanted in the body and helping to identify characteristic changes in DNA, and such devices will also be able to transmit all the information received wirelessly to a special application on a smartphone.
The graphene chip was developed to identify the most common form of genetic mutation that causes cancer, diabetes, heart and vascular diseases, neurodegenerative, autoimmune diseases, and inflammatory processes.
There are currently some technologies that can detect such diseases and disorders in the body caused by genetic mutations, but all methods are relatively slow, expensive, and require bulky equipment. The co-author of the new research project noted that the goal of their team was to develop a fast, simple, inexpensive, and easy-to-use method for detecting the disease at an early stage. According to the developers, it is the chip that will help replace bulky devices and will be able to respond more quickly to any changes in the body, as well as work with a smartphone and promptly transmit important information to the doctor.
The chip consists of several parts - a DNA probe and a graphene field-effect transistor. The probe is a piece of double-stranded DNA with a sequence encoding a certain type of single-nucleotide polymorphism. The main task of the chip is to capture molecules with a single nucleotide change and, when such mutations are detected, an electrical signal is transmitted along the probe.
The experts also noted that the chip they developed has a distinctive feature - it works electronically by attaching a DNA probe to a graphene transistor. According to the researchers, the new chip is the first device that combines DNA nanotechnology and high-resolution electronic probing, the device clearly shows how DNA can be made with chain substitution on a graphene transistor. This approach resulted in a technology that is quite suitable for use with wireless electronic devices to detect changes in the DNA chain.
The scientists are now looking to expand the technology and make the chip wireless. Professor Lal's team is preparing to test their method in a clinical setting, and they believe the chip will usher in a new era of diagnostics and personalized treatment.
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