The main idea at the base of ESILARANTE project is to characterize and develop a portable sensor platform for tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) detection based on laccase biosensors produced through the green, low-cost and environment-friendly ElectroSpray Deposition (ESD) technique. The commercialization of such a platform will push the use of biosensors for forensic analysis and on-road detection beyond the current state of the art.
In the biosensor manufacturing process, the enzyme immobilization strategy is a key factor to develop an efficient device with adequate performance in terms of reuse and storage. Recently, researchers from the MDA group at CNR-ISM produced new promising amperometric laccase-based biosensors with unprecedented reuse and storage capabilities using the ambient ESD methodology as immobilization technique. Therefore, the first goal of ESILARANTE is to achieve a molecular-level understanding of these new biosensors, the reason behind their excellent stability and reuse performance using different spectroscopies, microscopies and analytical techniques. This would allow to make a step forward in the development of new green and renewable systems to reduce pollution, which is at the core of some pillars of the Horizon Europe program and of strong relevance in the NextGenerationEU agenda.
The second goal is to apply laccase-based biosensors for the development of a portable and cost-effective platform for the detection of THC in capillary blood samples. While cannabinoid sensing protocols are well established in lab techniques, miniaturized and portable sensors are still not well developed.
Electrochemical devices promise to reduce greatly the analysis time per sample and to lower dramatically the costs while allowing sensitivity and miniaturization.

Acronym: ESILARANTE
Financing body: Ministero dell'Università e Ricerca (MUR)
Starting year: 2023
End year: 2025
Call: PRIN 2022
Budget ISM: 95,390 €
Role ISM: PI
Referent ISM: Mattea Carmen Castrovilli
Laboratory: MDA/ DepEST lab
Other Participants: University of Bologna
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