Is it true that Bioanalytical chemistry can help you live a healthier life?

 

The branch of analytical chemistry dedicated to the separation, detection, identification, and quantification of biological substances is known as bioanalytical chemistry. It uses chromatography and mass spectroscopy techniques, which are common in analytical chemistry.

The purpose of bioanalytical methods is to quantify a drug's and/or its metabolite's or biomarker's concentration in biological fluids such as blood, plasma, serum, urine, and saliva, as well as tissue extracts.

However, because biomolecules are designed to work in physiologic circumstances, pH, temperature, and ionic strength changes that occur during many traditional analyses can disrupt molecular interactions and cause structural alterations in proteins and nucleic acids. Existing analytical techniques have been modified to safeguard sensitive biomolecules, and new techniques, such as immunoassay, have been developed to take advantage of biomolecules' specific features.

Bioanalytical chemistry has a wide range of applications in a variety of fields, including environmental management, food quality control, and forensic investigation. Medicine is one subject where bioanalytical chemistry has experienced rapid advancement and application. This is partly owing to the advancement of biological medicines, as well as the recent appearance of a novel coronavirus that quickly spread around the globe.

Furthermore, the realization that individualizing treatment options is critical to improve patient outcomes has boosted demand for rapid and sensitive molecular disease characterisation approaches. This can be seen in cancer, where biomarkers and genetic phenotyping have made it possible to forecast which treatment will be most effective against a specific tumour.

Bioanalytical chemistry has also played an important role in improving our understanding of disease mechanisms, which helps us create new treatments. This has recently been demonstrated in neuroscience research, where novel bioanalytical techniques have allowed researchers to gather previously inconceivable information about neuron function and neurotransmitter release. Biosensors and microdialysis probes, for example, have made it possible to quantify changes in various disease states by measuring the transport of neurotransmitters across neuronal synapses.

Bioanalytical approaches can help with illness control as well as elucidating disease processes. This was recently demonstrated during the global pandemic of COVID-19. As the virus spread, it became clear that screening to identify and isolate sick people was critical to limiting the illness.

Bioanalytical experts rapidly rose to the occasion, inventing COVID-19 assays based on swab samples from the nose and throat. However, the tests' introduction showed inadequacies in existing bioanalytical processes. Low amounts of virus particles were not always detected, and the results differed between sample types. Furthermore, utilising polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to detect viral RNA, findings could not be supplied quickly enough since the samples had to be sent to a laboratory for examination, where resources were limited.

The invention of a portable quick antigen immunoassay analysis employing microfluidic and lab-on-a-chip technologies was used to address this issue, allowing for more widespread testing. In addition, novel diagnostic methods for predicting disease severity and therapy response in COVID-19-infected patients have been created. This recent study will provide essential insight into how to make the most use of healthcare resources while still providing excellent patient care.