IIT Roorkee develops sensor for detecting neurological disorders

ROORKEE: Scientists from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee have developed a sensor that can effectively detect neurological disorders like schizophrenia and Parkinson’s disease at an early stage, a statement said on Tuesday.

When a person suffers from these disorders, the level of a chemical called dopamine changes in the brain. The sensor can detect even a small change in the level of this chemical, thus detecting the possibility of a neurological disorder, it said. The team used graphene quantum dot mixed with sulphur and boron for fabricating the sensors. In the presence of a very small amount of dopamine, the sensor changes light intensity which can easily be measured, thus providing an estimate of the amount of dopamine in the brain, the statement said.

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As most of these disorders cannot be completely cured, early detection helps in controlling their advancement. Hence, the sensor developed at the Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee is significant, it said. The findings of the IIT Roorkee team were recently published in the prestigious Nature Scientific Reports. Soumitra Satapathi, who led the team of researchers, said, "Our present study opens up the possibility of designing a point-of-care device which will be suitable for detecting the amount of dopamine in real samples.”