Chennai, April 28 : A team of Indian researchers has developed a new biosensor platform that can test and diagnose preeclampsia -- is a life-threatening complication caused by hypertension -- among pregnant women in 30 minutes.

Preeclampsia, which typically develops after 20 weeks of pregnancy, affects 2-8 per cent of pregnancies worldwide.

While traditional methods to detect preeclampsia are time-consuming, and require huge infrastructure and trained personnel, the new platform offers rapid, on-site, and affordable screening at an early stage. Timely treatment is crucial to minimise both maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality rates.

The team led by the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT) Madras, along with the Vellore Institute of Technology developed the Plasmonic Fibre Optic Absorbance Biosensor (P-FAB) technology using fibre optics sensor technology.

They focussed on Placental growth factor (PlGF) -- an angiogenic blood biomarker used widely for the diagnosis of preeclampsia.

'The P-FAB technology was able to detect PlGF at a femtomolar level using polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) based U-bent polymeric optical fiber (POF) sensor probes,' said Prof. V.V. Raghavendra Sai, Biosensors Laboratory, Department of Applied Mechanics and Biomedical Engineering, IIT Madras.

The 'PlGF' biomarker peaks at 28 to 32 weeks in normal pregnancy but in the case of women with pre-eclampsia, it decreases by 2 to 3 times after 28 weeks of pregnancy.

The new POF sensor probes could measure PlGF within 30 minutes using the P-FAB strategy. The clinical sample testing confirmed the accuracy, reliability, specificity, and sensitivity of the P-FAB-based POF sensor platform, thereby paving the way for cost-effective technology for PlGF detection and its potential for pre-eclampsia diagnosis.

'The biosensor platform developed by the research team is simple and reliable, paving the way for affordable diagnosis. It can also lead to increasing the test coverage of Placental growth factor (PlGF) biomarker tests, thereby resulting in a potential for a significant impact on the management of pre-eclampsia and towards reduction in the global burden of mortality and morbidity from preeclampsia,' Sai added.

The study, published in the reputed journal Biosensors and Bioelectronics, showed that the POF platform has potential applications for detecting other communicable and non-communicable diseases such as cancer, tuberculosis, Alzheimer's, etc. It eliminates the use of harsh chemicals and utilises recyclable POF.

It can also be used in remote and resource-limited settings for preeclampsia diagnosis, said the researchers.

/IANS