Complex laboratory investigations do produce reliable results, but they are not useful for point-of-care diagnostics. This is especially true in developing countries, which must rely on simple, inexpensive test methods that do not require a power source. Biosensors based on paper are an interesting alternative. American researchers from the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have now introduced a particularly clever concept in the journal Angewandte Chemie: print on one side of the paper, fold it up origami-style, laminate it, and the test is ready. Test evaluation requires only a voltmeter.
