Electrochemical strategies for lateral flow and LAMP-Based platforms toward pathogen detection: a critical review

Abstract

Background: The integration of lateral flow assays (LFAs) with loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) has gained increasing attention in analytical and bioanalytical chemistry for rapid and sensitive pathogen detection. LAMP offers efficient nucleic acid amplification under isothermal conditions, while LFAs provide simplicity, portability, and low-cost operation. However, conventional LFA-based visual or colorimetric readouts suffer from limited sensitivity and subjective interpretation, restricting quantitative analysis and analytical reliability. Results: Recent studies demonstrate that combining LAMP or LFA platforms with electrochemical detection substantially improves analytical performance. Electrochemical readouts enable rapid, quantitative, and operator-independent signal acquisition, eliminating ambiguities associated with visual interpretation. In addition, electrochemical systems are inherently compatible with miniaturization and integration, allowing compact device development without compromising sensitivity or detection limits. This review presents the fundamentals of LAMP and LFA technologies, followed by an overview of electrochemical biosensing principles, including sensor architecture, fabrication strategies, and stability aspects. Current approaches for integrating electrochemical detection into LAMP and LFA assays are critically discussed, highlighting signal amplification strategies and analytical performance. Significance and novelty: This review provides a critical and up-to-date perspective on electrochemical LAMP–LFA integrated platforms for pathogen detection. By comparing existing strategies and addressing key challenges related to integration, robustness, and translational scalability, this review emphasizes the potential of electrochemical detection to overcome the main limitations of conventional LFA and LAMP-based diagnostics. The insights discussed here support the development of reliable, quantitative, and deployable diagnostic devices for point-of-care applications.