{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,5]],"date-time":"2026-02-05T07:07:27Z","timestamp":1770275247094,"version":"3.49.0"},"reference-count":34,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"12","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2017,11,23]],"date-time":"2017-11-23T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1511395200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Sensors"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Serotonin is an important neurotransmitter that plays a major role in the pathogenesis of a variety of conditions, including psychiatric disorders. The detection of serotonin typically relies on high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), an expensive technique that requires sophisticated equipment and trained personnel, and is not suitable for point-of-care applications. In this contribution, we introduce a novel sensor platform that can measure spiked neurotransmitter concentrations in whole blood samples in a fast and low-cost manner by combining synthetic receptors with a thermal readout technique\u2014the heat-transfer method. In addition, the design of a miniaturized version of the sensing platform is presented that aims to bridge the gap between measurements in a laboratory setting and point-of-care measurements. This fully automated and integrated, user-friendly design features a capillary pumping unit that is compatible with point-of-care sampling techniques such as a blood lancet device (sample volume\u2014between 50 \u00b5L and 300 \u00b5L). Sample pre-treatment is limited to the addition of an anti-coagulant. With this fully integrated setup, it is possible to successfully discriminate serotonin from a competitor neurotransmitter (histamine) in whole blood samples. This is the first demonstration of a point-of-care ready device based on synthetic receptors for the screening of neurotransmitters in complex matrices, illustrating the sensor\u2019s potential application in clinical research and diagnosis of e.g., early stage depression.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/s17122701","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2017,11,23]],"date-time":"2017-11-23T11:15:47Z","timestamp":1511435747000},"page":"2701","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":20,"title":["Single-Shot Detection of Neurotransmitters in Whole-Blood Samples by Means of the Heat-Transfer Method in Combination with Synthetic Receptors"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"17","author":[{"given":"Thijs","family":"Vandenryt","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute for Materials Research, Hasselt University, Wetenschapspark 1, B-3590 Diepenbeek, Belgium"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6939-0866","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Bart","family":"Van Grinsven","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute for Materials Research, Hasselt University, Wetenschapspark 1, B-3590 Diepenbeek, Belgium"},{"name":"Maastricht Science Programme, Maastricht University, P.O. Box 616, 6200 MD Maastricht, The Netherlands"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0214-1320","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Kasper","family":"Eersels","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute for Materials Research, Hasselt University, Wetenschapspark 1, B-3590 Diepenbeek, Belgium"},{"name":"Maastricht Science Programme, Maastricht University, P.O. Box 616, 6200 MD Maastricht, The Netherlands"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7218-0851","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Peter","family":"Cornelis","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute for Materials Research, Hasselt University, Wetenschapspark 1, B-3590 Diepenbeek, Belgium"},{"name":"Department of Physics and Astronomy, Soft-Matter Physics and Biophysics Section, KULeuven, Celestijnenlaan 200 D, B-3001 Leuven, Belgium"}]},{"given":"Safira","family":"Kholwadia","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Division of Chemistry and Environmental Science, School of Science and the Environment, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Manchester Metropolitan University, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, UK"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0172-9330","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Thomas","family":"Cleij","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Maastricht Science Programme, Maastricht University, P.O. Box 616, 6200 MD Maastricht, The Netherlands"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6845-0866","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ronald","family":"Thoelen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute for Materials Research, Hasselt University, Wetenschapspark 1, B-3590 Diepenbeek, Belgium"}]},{"given":"Ward","family":"De Ceuninck","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute for Materials Research, Hasselt University, Wetenschapspark 1, B-3590 Diepenbeek, Belgium"},{"name":"IMOMEC Division, IMEC vzw, Wetenschapspark 1, B3590 Diepenbeek, Belgium"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0429-8073","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Marloes","family":"Peeters","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute for Materials Research, Hasselt University, Wetenschapspark 1, B-3590 Diepenbeek, Belgium"},{"name":"Division of Chemistry and Environmental Science, School of Science and the Environment, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Manchester Metropolitan University, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, UK"}]},{"given":"Patrick","family":"Wagner","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute for Materials Research, Hasselt University, Wetenschapspark 1, B-3590 Diepenbeek, Belgium"},{"name":"Department of Physics and Astronomy, Soft-Matter Physics and Biophysics Section, KULeuven, Celestijnenlaan 200 D, B-3001 Leuven, Belgium"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2017,11,23]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"85","DOI":"10.1016\/S0278-5846(02)00338-X","article-title":"Role of Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors in Psychiatric Disorders: A Comprehensive Review","volume":"27","author":"Vaswani","year":"2003","journal-title":"Prog. 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