Advanced Electrochemical Biosensing of Nucleic Acids for Decentralized Point-of-Care Testing

Electrochemical nucleic acid biosensors have emerged as a highly promising platform for point-of-care (POC) diagnostics because they combine the sequence specificity of nucleic acid recognition with the low cost, portability, rapid response, and miniaturization potential of electrochemical readout. Recent progress in programmable biorecognition, particularly CRISPR-based assays, isothermal amplification, and advanced surface engineering, has substantially expanded the sensitivity, selectivity, and multiplexing capability of these systems. At the same time, integration with microfluidics, chip-based formats, and smartphone-compatible readers is bringing electrochemical biosensing closer to decentralized molecular testing. Despite this momentum, major translational challenges remain, including robust performance in complex clinical samples, standardization, manufacturability, and validation beyond proof-of-concept laboratory studies. This Research Topic aims to highlight advances that move electrochemical nucleic acid biosensors from elegant prototypes toward clinically relevant and deployable POC technologies.The goal of this Research Topic is to address one of the central challenges in the field: how to translate highly sensitive electrochemical nucleic acid biosensors from laboratory proof-of-concept studies into robust, clinically relevant point-of-care platforms. Recent years have brought major advances in CRISPR-enabled electrochemical detection, isothermal amplification, signal amplification chemistries, and the integration of biosensors with microfluidic and portable readout systems, all of which have expanded the analytical performance and practical potential of nucleic acid testing. However, many reported systems still rely on simplified matrices, limited validation, or device architectures that remain difficult to standardize and manufacture for real-world use. This Research Topic therefore aims to bring together studies that not only report innovative sensing concepts, but also tackle real-sample analysis, multiplexing, manufacturability, user-friendly integration, and clinical or field-oriented validation. By highlighting such advances, the collection seeks to define practical routes toward deployable electrochemical nucleic acid diagnostics for decentralized testing.We welcome Original Research, Review, Mini Review, Methods, and Perspective articles that present innovative concepts as well as critical assessments of challenges and future directions in decentralized molecular diagnostics, on themes including but not limited to:• Amplification-free detection approaches for rapid and simplified molecular analysis• Signal amplification chemistries, including enzymatic, nanomaterial-based, and catalytic enhancement strategies• Antifouling surface design and interface engineering for robust sensor performance in biological fluids• Real-sample analysis and validation in complex biological matrices (blood, saliva, urine, environmental samples)• Sensor robustness, reproducibility, and long-term stability under operational conditions• Clinically relevant and field-validated performance benchmarking toward regulatory and translational readinessConflict of Interest Statement: Yi Sun is an inventor on a patent application related to the subject matter of this Research Topic, “Fluid handling system for multiplex pathogen detection: a fast and sensitive real-time PCR assay on a solid array” (European Patent Application No. 25189320.2). Topic editors: Yi Sun, Robert Ziółkowski Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/82292/advanced-electrochemical-biosensing-of-nucleic-acids-for-decentralized-point-of-care-testing