The recent development of nanomaterials enhanced paper-based electrochemical analytical devices

Integration of electrochemical detection methods into paper-based analytical devices (PADs) provides a powerful tool for the area of point-of-care testing (POCT) because the electrochemical PADs (termed as ePADs) enable to rapidly determine a broad spectrum of analytes from ions to living cells in a miniaturized, cost-effective and user-friendly manner. Recently, nanomaterials and their composites were extensively introduced in ePADs for improvement of their detection performance. This review attempts to provide a comprehensive information on the ePADs including a general aspect of ePADs and recent development of ePADs by highlighting selected publication. We mainly focus on the fabrication of ePADs, enhancement strategies of nanomaterials and potential applications of ePADs in the fields of environmental monitoring, food safety management and disease diagnosis. Based on the limitations and challenges associated with the development of ePADs, the future perspectives of this research field are proposed.