Recent Developments in Biosensor Technologies for Pathogen Detection in Water

Contamination of drinking water with pathogenic agents is a serious threat to the population. The potential presence of bacteria, viruses and protozoa requires efficient and effective monitoring methods that allow the detection and quantification of these pathogens. Conventional methods of pathogen detection in water primarily rely on culturing, a pre-concentration procedure and some biochemical identification which require a significant period of time ranging from 24 hours to up to a week. Recently significant efforts have been made to develop biosensors capable of rapid and realtime detection of pathogenic agents. This report summarizes the recent developments of biosensor systems used for this purpose.