A Review on Xanthine Oxidase-Based Electrochemical Biosensors: Food Safety and Quality Control Applications

Abstract

Electrochemical biosensors are integrated bio-receptor–transducer devices that convert specific biological interactions into measurable electrical signals. Over the past decade, the use of novel nanomaterials, advanced enzyme immobilization techniques, and enhanced sensor architectures have been extensively studied, yielding significant progress in the design of highly sensitive, rapid, and reliable electrochemical biosensors. In the modern food industry various types of electrochemical biosensors are used, playing essential roles in the processes monitoring and optimization. This review highlights the strategies implemented to improve the analytical performance of electrochemical enzyme biosensors based on xanthine oxidase (XOx) for the quantitative detection of xanthine (X) and hypoxanthine (Hx), analytes relevant to the field of food quality control. The article covers recent developments (mainly original studies reported from 2010 to date) in the substrate materials, different electrode designs, working principles, advantages, limitations, and applications of XOx biosensors for meat freshness assessment. The article is meant to be a valuable resource that provides insights for improving design for the next generation bio-electroanalytical platforms to ensure food safety.

Keywords

• xanthine
• hypoxanthine
• xanthine oxidase
• electrochemical biosensor
• fish
• meat