Nanomaterials-Based Electrochemical Δ⁹-THC and CBD Sensors for Chronic Pain

Chronic pain is now included in the designation of chronic diseases, such as cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease, which can impair quality of life and are major causes of death and disability worldwide. Pain can be treated using cannabinoids such as <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msup><mrow><mo>Δ</mo></mrow><mrow><mn>9</mn></mrow></msup></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula>-tetrahydrocannabinol (<inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msup><mrow><mo>Δ</mo></mrow><mrow><mn>9</mn></mrow></msup></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula>-THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) due to their wide range of therapeutic benefits, particularly as sedatives, analgesics, neuroprotective agents, or anti-cancer medicines. While little is known about the pharmacokinetics of these compounds, there is increasing interest in the scientific understanding of the benefits and clinical applications of cannabinoids. In this review, we study the use of nanomaterial-based electrochemical sensing for detecting <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msup><mrow><mo>Δ</mo></mrow><mrow><mn>9</mn></mrow></msup></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula>-THC and CBD. We investigate how nanomaterials can be functionalized to obtain highly sensitive and selective electrochemical sensors for detecting <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msup><mrow><mo>Δ</mo></mrow><mrow><mn>9</mn></mrow></msup></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula>-THC and CBD. Additionally, we discuss the impacts of sensor pretreatment at fixed potentials and physiochemical parameters of the sensing medium, such as pH, on the electrochemical performance of <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msup><mrow><mo>Δ</mo></mrow><mrow><mn>9</mn></mrow></msup></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula>-THC and CBD sensors. We believe this review will serve as a guideline for developing <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msup><mrow><mo>Δ</mo></mrow><mrow><mn>9</mn></mrow></msup></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula>-THC and CBD electrochemical sensors for point-of-care applications.