Core–shell structured Ag@C for direct electrochemistry and hydrogen peroxide biosensor applications

Recent trends in core/shell nanoparticles: their enzyme-based electrochemical biosensor applications

Improving novel and efficient biosensors for determining organic/inorganic compounds is a challenge in analytical chemistry for clinical diagnosis and research in biomedical sciences. Electrochemical enzyme-based biosensors are one of the commercially successful groups of biosensors that make them highly appealing because of their low cost, high selectivity, and sensitivity. Core/shell nanoparticles have emerged as versatile platforms for developing enzyme-based electrochemical biosensors due to their unique physicochemical properties and tunable surface characteristics. This study provides a comprehensive review of recent trends and advancements in the utilization of core/shell nanoparticles for the development of enzyme-based electrochemical biosensors. Moreover, a statistical evaluation of the studies carried out in this field between 2007 and 2023 is made according to the preferred electrochemical techniques. The recent applications of core/shell nanoparticles in enzyme-based electrochemical biosensors were summarized to quantify environmental pollutants, food contaminants, and clinical biomarkers. Additionally, the review highlights recent innovations and strategies to improve the performance of enzyme-based electrochemical biosensors using core/shell nanoparticles. These include the integration of nanomaterials with specific functions such as hydrophilic character, chemical and thermal stability, conductivity, biocompatibility, and catalytic activity, as well as the development of new hybrid nanostructures and multifunctional nanocomposites.

Using Nanomaterials as Excellent Immobilisation Layer for Biosensor Design

The endless development in nanotechnology has introduced new vitality in device fabrication including biosensor design for biomedical applications. With outstanding features like suitable biocompatibility, good electrical and thermal conductivity, wide surface area and catalytic activity, nanomaterials have been considered excellent and promising immobilisation candidates for the development of high-impact biosensors after they emerged. Owing to these reasons, the present review deals with the efficient use of nanomaterials as immobilisation candidates for biosensor fabrication. These include the implementation of carbon nanomaterials-graphene and its derivatives, carbon nanotubes, carbon nanoparticles, carbon nanodots-and MXenes, likewise their synergistic impact when merged with metal oxide nanomaterials. Furthermore, we also discuss the origin of the synthesis of some nanomaterials, the challenges associated with the use of those nanomaterials and the chemistry behind their incorporation with other materials for biosensor design. The last section covers the prospects for the development and application of the highlighted nanomaterials.

Surface modification of cerasomes with AuNPs@poly(ionic liquid)s for an enhanced stereo biomimetic membrane electrochemical platform

A novel liposomal nanocomposite, Au@PIL-cerasome, with biocompatibility and conductivity was fabricated via the self-assembly of cerasomes and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) stabilized by poly(ionic liquid)s (PILs). The surface charge, morphology and chemical composition of the nanocomposites were characterized by the zeta potential, UV-vis, TEM, SEM and EDS. The nanocomposites exhibited structural stability directly on the surface of solid electrodes, without fusion. Electrochemical impedance experiments demonstrated that the nanocomposites had an enhanced conductivity compared with unmodified cerasomes. Horseradish peroxidase (HRP), as a reporter, was immobilized on the nanocomposites without denaturation or inactivation. The direct electron transfer of HRP was achieved, and the HRP/Au@PIL-cerasome/GCE exhibited an amplified current and improved electrocatalytic activity. Activity towards H₂O₂ displayed a linear range over 10-70 μM and a detection limit of 3.3 μM. Activity towards NO₂^- displayed linear ranges over 1-5 mM and 5-1280 mM, and the limit of detection was 0.11 mM. In addition, the electrode was stable and reproducible, with 6% RSD. Such multi-component liposomal nanocomposites with an enhanced electrical performance pave a better way for building novel and straightforward 3D stereo biomimetic electrochemical platforms and even molecular communication systems to investigate information transduction between cells.

An electrochemiluminescent sensing matrix for real-time probing of cell-output reactive oxygen species

Herein, a novel cell-based electrochemiluminescent (ECL) sensing matrix was developed for probing reactive oxygen species (ROSs) produced from mouse macrophage cells. Uniformly sized Au nanoparticles (AuNPs) with an average diameter of 16 nm were decorated on the surface of indium tin oxide (ITO) glass through the connection of hydrolyzed 3-aminopropyl trimethoxysilane (APTMS) serving as a sensor substrate. Then, the surface was covered with a poly-l-lysine thin film, where mouse macrophage cells were successfully cultured. The morphology of the electrodes obtained was characterized by scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy, and their electrochemical properties were investigated by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. A linear response was observed from the AuNPs/APTMS/ITO substrate with a sensitivity of 0.465 units per mg/l of H₂O₂, and a higher sensitivity of 207 units per mg/l of zymosan. Thereafter, a factor of 84 molecules of H₂O₂ produced by a single glycogen was estimated. The results demonstrated that the ECL response of this cell-based sensor quantitatively correlated with yielded ROSs during cell oxygen metabolism under the stimulation of zymosan. This work suggests that the prepared sensing matrix is efficient for monitoring the oxygen metabolism of living cells and can be applied in biological and clinical fields to provide significant information on the regular or abnormal function of cells.

MoS2 nanosheet–Au nanorod hybrids for highly sensitive amperometric detection of H2O2 in living cells

MoS₂–Au hybrids were utilized to construct a sensitive H₂O₂ electrochemical biosensor for the determination of H₂O₂ released from living cells.

Interprotein Coupling Enhances the Electrocatalytic Efficiency of Tobacco Peroxidase Immobilized at a Graphite Electrode

Covalent immobilization of enzymes at electrodes via amide bond formation is usually carried out by a two-step protocol, in which surface carboxylic groups are first activated with the corresponding cross-coupling reagents and then reacted with protein amine groups. Herein, it is shown that a modification of the above protocol, involving the simultaneous incubation of tobacco peroxidase and the pyrolytic graphite electrode with the cross-coupling reagents produces higher and more stable electrocatalytic currents than those obtained with either physically adsorbed enzymes or covalently immobilized enzymes according to the usual immobilization protocol. The remarkably improved electrocatalytic properties of the present peroxidase biosensor that operates in the 0.3 V ≤ E ≤ 0.8 V (vs SHE) potential range can be attributed to both an efficient electronic coupling between tobacco peroxidase and graphite and to the formation of intra- and intermolecular amide bonds that stabilize the protein structure and improve the percentage of anchoring groups that provide an adequate orientation for electron exchange with the electrode. The optimized tobacco peroxidase sensor exhibits a working concentration range of 10-900 μM, a sensitivity of 0.08 A M(-1) cm(-2) (RSD 0.05), a detection limit of 2 μM (RSD 0.09), and a good long-term stability, as long as it operates at low temperature. These parameter values are among the best reported so far for a peroxidase biosensor operating under simple direct electron transfer conditions.

Electrochemical method assisted immobilization and orientation of myoglobin into biomimetic brij 56 film and its direct electrochemistry study

A simple cyclic voltammetric method was applied to assemble and orient a model protein, namely, myoglobin (Mb), into a biocompatible Brij 56 film. Ultraviolet-visible and circular dichroism spectra indicated that Mb in Brij 56 matrix preserved its secondary structure. Fourier transform infrared spectra confirmed the formation of hydrogen bonds between Mb and Brij 56. These hydrogen bonds acted as the electron tunnel to transfer electrons from Mb's active sites to the underlying glassy carbon electrode. Effective direct electron transfer of Mb was realized with the presence of a couple of quasi-reversible and well-defined redox peaks at -310 mV (vs standard calomel electrode) in the studied potential range. The peaks were attributed to the redox couple of heme Fe(II)/Fe(III) of the well-oriented Mb in Brij 56 matrix. The surface coverage and the electron transfer rate (ks) of Mb immobilized into the Brij 56 film was ∼4.9×10(-11) mol cm(-2) and 72.6±3.0 s(-1), respectively. An excellent electrocatalytic response of the immobilized Mb toward nitrite in the absence of electron transfer mediators was observed. These results emphasized that the biomimetic Brij 56 could be used as an attractive material for immobilizing proteins and constructing biosensors.

Facile synthesis of monodisperse Ag@C@Ag core–double shell spheres for application in the simultaneous sensing of thymol and phenol

A facile, effective and reproducible method has been carried out for the synthesis of Ag@carbon@Ag core–shell spheres as a high-performance electrochemical platform.

An enzymatic biosensor for hydrogen peroxide based on one-pot preparation of CeO2-reduced graphene oxide nanocomposite

The study describes cerium oxide-reduced graphene oxide (CeO₂-rGO) prepared by a facile one-pot hydrothermal approach and its assembly with horseradish peroxidase (HRP) for the detection of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) at trace levels.

Co3O4 nanowires supported on 3D N-doped carbon foam as an electrochemical sensing platform for efficient H2O2 detection

Using a simple hydrothermal procedure and a subsequent annealing treatment, one-dimensional (1D) cobalt oxide nanowires (Co3O4-NWs) with tunable size have been successfully in situ fabricated on a three-dimensional (3D) carbon foam (CF) network. By changing the hydrothermal treatment time (0.5, 1, or 2 h) at 180 °C, size-controlled Co3O4 nanowires can be formed on the CF. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) measurements showed that nanoporous Co3O4 nanowires grew uniformly on the 3D carbon framework. Because of the 3D porous architecture and the high conductivity of the carbon foam skeleton, the obtained composites are characterized by fast mass transport, large surface area and high electronic conductivity, which make them very promising electrochemical sensing materials. Among the studied composites, the Co3O4-NWs/CF hydrothermally treated for 1 h exhibited the lowest detection limit (1.4 μM) and the largest linear ranges (0.01-1.4 mM) with a sensitivity of 230 nA μM(-1) cm(-2) for H2O2 detection. The present study shows that metal oxides supported on 3D carbon materials present a class of promising sensing platform for the electrochemical detection of H2O2.

Horseradish peroxidase immobilization on carbon nanodots/CoFe layered double hydroxides: direct electrochemistry and hydrogen peroxide sensing

Carbon nanodots and CoFe layered double hydroxide composites (C-Dots/LDHs) were prepared via simply mixing C-Dots and CoFe-LDHs. The as-prepared composites were used for the immobilization of horseradish peroxidase (HRP) on the glass carbon (GC) electrode. The electrochemical behavior of the HRP/C-Dots/LDHs/GC electrode and its application as a H2O2 biosensor were investigated. The results indicated that HRP immobilized by C-Dots/LDHs retained the activity of enzyme and displayed quasi-reversible redox behavior and fast electron transfer with an electron transfer rate constant ks of 8.46 s(-1). Under optimum experimental conditions, the HRP/C-Dots/LDHs/GC electrode displayed good electrocatalytic reduction activity and excellent analytic performance toward H2O2. The H2O2 biosensor showed a linear range of 0.1-23.1 μM (R(2) = 0.9942) with a calculated detection limit of 0.04 μM (S/N = 3). In addition, the biosensor exhibited high sensitivity, good selectivity, acceptable reproducibility and stability. The superior properties of this biosensor are attributed to the synergistic effect of HRP, C-Dots and CoFe-LDHs, which has been proved by investigating their electrochemical response to H2O2. Thus the C-Dots and LDHs composites provide a promising platform for the immobilization of redox enzymes and construction of sensitive biosensors.

Effects of fullerene C₆₀ nanoparticles on A549 cells

Fullerene C60 nanoparticles (C60 NPs) have been widely applied in many fields due to their excellent physical and chemical properties. As production and applications of C60 NPs expand, public concern about the potential risk to human health has also risen. The toxicity of C60 NPs was evaluated by the CCK-8 assay using the cultured human epithelial cell line A549. Cellular uptake of the C60 NPs was observed by TEM imaging. In our findings, C60 NPs could readily enter A549 cells and showed no significant toxicity. Exposure of cultured A549 cells to C60 NPs led to an increase of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) while glutathione reductase activity was probably activated to generate more GSH to maintain a cellular oxidation-reduction equilibrium. The A549 cells responded to the ROS increases through the inauguration of autophagic responses, aimed at restoring cellular health and equilibrium.