New sensor identifies gases more accurately with a ‘speed camera’ system

Modular platform enables a wide range of applications: from early detection of diabetes and leaks in the chemical industry to freshness monitoring of fruit and vegetables

01-Oct-2025 - From breath analysis to explosive detection: these applications require reliable electronic ‘noses’. Unfortunately, current technology often falls short. That is why researchers at KU Leuven have developed a flexible sensor platform that not only detects gases, but also records their speed—like a ...

Pumping up the music of molecules

Significantly improving the "sense of smell" of molecular laser spectroscopy: Increases chances to reliably detect diseases

25-Aug-2022 - Sensitive animal noses can sniff out trace particles, such as volatile organic compounds, in the ambient air. Humans, on the other hand, are developing innovative technologies for this purpose, such as optical spectroscopy. This uses laser light to detect the molecular composition of gases. It ...

Love is in the air: Sexual arrousal can be determined from breath

Contribute evaluating sexual difficulties

04-May-2022 - More blood flow to the genitals, an increased pulse and dilated pupils: These physical characteristics reveal that a person is sexually aroused. But lust can also be detected in the breath, as a study of an international research team has now shown. According to the study, a characteristic ...

New label-free detection technique digitally counts intact SARS-CoV-2 virus particles in saliva or exhaled breath

25-Jan-2022 - As health and research institutions continue to rapidly develop new methodologies for detecting SARS-CoV-2, researchers from the Holonyak Micro & Nanotechnology Laboratory have found themselves at both forefronts of discovery and featured on the cover of the Journal of the American Chemical ...

Antibiotic levels measurable in breath for first time

Researchers are testing a biosensor for personalized dosing of medications

23-Sep-2021 - A team of engineers and biotechnologists at the University of Freiburg has for the first time shown in mammals that the concentration of antibiotics in the body can be determined using breath samples. The breath measurements also corresponded to the antibiotic concentrations in the blood. The ...

Detection of cancer from exhaled breath

Breath gas analysis for medical diagnostics

03-Dec-2020 - The air we exhale contains information that can assist with the diagnosis of disease. Researchers at the Fraunhofer Project Hub for Microelectronic and Optical Systems for Biomedicine MEOS are now developing solutions designed to enable the analysis of breath gas for this purpose. Although their ...

Measuring ethanol’s deadly twin

18-Sep-2019 - ETH researchers have developed an inexpensive, handheld measuring device that can distinguish between methanol and potable alcohol. It offers a simple, quick method of detecting adulterated or contaminated alcoholic beverages and is able to diagnose methanol poisoning in exhaled breath. Methanol ...

Pungent tasting substance in ginger reduces bad breath

How food ingredients affect our taste perception

31-Jul-2018 - The pungent compound 6-gingerol, a constituent of ginger, stimulates an enzyme contained in saliva – an enzyme which breaks down foul-smelling substances. It thus ensures fresh breath and a better aftertaste. Citric acid, on the other hand, increases the sodium ion content of saliva, making ...

Cancer diagnosis with a breath test

A new test for the early detection of lung cancer measures tiny changes in the composition of the breath

21-Apr-2017 - “Inhale deeply ... and exhale.” This is what a test for lung cancer could be like in future. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research in Bad Nauheim have developed a method that can detect the disease at an early stage. To this effect, they investigated the presence of ...

A research project on myxobacteria has brought victory in the first BlueCompetition

Pharmaceutical biotechnology takes the first places in the competition

13-Feb-2012 - The international “BlueCompetition” science contest for optimizing bioprocess analysis has come to a conclusion, and it is now clear who the winning workgroups from the various universities are. In the end, the scientific jury viewed Stephan Hüttel from the Institute for Pharmaceutical ...