Dr. Aksimentiev from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, with colleagues at Northeastern and University of North Carolina, has developed multiplex detection platform for general biomarker sensing. This platform uses nanopore-based fingerprinting of nucleic acid nanoparticles to detect the presence of biomarkers. Using a single nanoparticle kit, this invention makes it possible to detect a variety of biomarkers and, thus, diagnose a variety of health conditions. The primary application for this biomarker sensing platform is in the diagnosis of health conditions (e.g., cancer). Additional applications include encryption for homeland security and biodefense.