Associate Professor MIZUNO Toshihisa of Life and Applied Chemistry Group has received high praise for his research paper on potassium ion fluorescence sensing, "Potassium ion fluorescence sensing in chemically stimulated mammalian cells using a GINKO2-encapsulated sensor fibermat," which has been selected for the front cover of the international academic journal "Chemical Communications," published by the Royal Society of Chemistry.

There is growing interest in technologies that can quantify specific biomolecules "on-site" from biological samples containing many contaminants, such as blood, without requiring large-scale equipment or pre-treatment. This is because it is expected to be the foundational technology for diagnostic chips that allow patients to diagnose their own health status using AI. Achieving this requires utilizing the high molecular recognition ability of proteins, but proteins are vulnerable to changes in the external environment, so combining them with protection technologies is important for long-term stable use. Therefore, we have developed a unique technology to immobilize proteins without denaturing them within nonwoven nanofibers composed of a resin that forms a hydration gel and a hydrophobic resin. These nanofibers exhibit high permeability to low molecular weight substances while preventing protein leakage.

In this study, we utilized this property to create a nonwoven fabric in which the potassium ion sensor protein GINKO2 was immobilized and embedded. As a result, we were able to quantitatively detect potassium ions in the culture medium while maintaining selectivity and fluorescence responsiveness. Furthermore, this nonwoven fabric allows for the adherent culture of HeLa cells and A549 cells, and by observing the time-dependent changes in ion secretion associated with drug treatment, we successfully detected potassium ions in real time. This achievement is the second example in the world of developing sensor nonwoven fabrics by immobilizing sensor proteins, following our previously reported lactic acid sensor nonwoven fabric (RSC Advances 23, 29584-29593 (2023)), and demonstrates the effectiveness of the nonwoven fabric materials we are developing as sensor platforms usable in biological systems.

"Chemical Communications" is one of the leading international academic journals in the field of chemistry, and particularly noteworthy papers are featured on its front cover. This selection demonstrates that the novelty and academic significance of this research have been highly evaluated.

Paper Information

<Publication Journal> Chemical Communications
<Volume/Issue/Pages> 62, 5651-5654 (2026)
<Published paper> Potassium ion fluorescent sensing in chemically stimulated mammalian cells using a GINKO2-encapsulated sensor fibermat
<Contents> Front Cover
<URL> https://pubs.rsc.org/en/Content/ArticleLanding/2026/CC/D5CC05871F

Acknowledgments

This research is the result of a project spearheaded by SAKO Asumi (2nd year Master's student, at the time of the research) in Program of Life and Materials Chemistry, Department of Engineering. This research is also the result of collaborative work between Associate Professor OBATA Akiko of the Life Science and Applied Chemistry Group and Professor NASU Yusuke of Academia Sinica in Taiwan. Furthermore, this research was supported by grants from the Sumitomo Foundation for Basic Science Research and JSPS KAKENHI Grant Number JP24K15745.

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