Polyaniline synthesis and its biosensor application

In this study, five polyaniline compounds were synthesized using different protonic acids and incorporated into a conductometric biosensor used for bovine viral diarrhea virus detection. The biosensor was developed and evaluated by the authors for bacterial pathogen detection in previous studies. The biosensor consisted of two parts: the immunosensor and the electronic data collection system. Liquid sample moved through the immunosensor surface by capillary action. The specificity of the biosensor was based on the unique binding characteristics of the polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies immobilized on the immunosensor. Polyaniline was used in the biosensor architecture as the transducer due to its electronic and bio-molecular properties. Results showed that the biosensor was sensitive at a concentration of 103 cell culture infective dose per milliliter (CCID/ml) of BVDV antigens. The promising results on the BVDV detection demonstrated that the conductometric biosensor was interchangeable for different target molecules of detection. Further modification could be implemented to evaluate the biosensor as a rapid diagnostic device to detect other infectious disease outbreaks in livestock population.