Porous silicon for bacteria detection

Over the past decade, much effort has been directed toward the development of new bioassays and biosensors for the rapid detection of bacteria. This chapter provides an up-to-date review of various integrated approaches for bacterial detection by porous silicon (PSi)-based biosensors. These approaches can be divided into two main categories: 'indirect' and 'direct' bacteria detection. In the first route, detection is achieved by targeting only fractions of the bacterial cell or protein/DNA fragments that are secreted by the bacteria. In the second route, detection relies on direct binding of the entire bacterium cell to the PSi transducer via appropriate biorecognition elements.