A new microplatform based on titanium dioxide nanofibers/graphene oxide nanosheets nanocomposite modified screen printed carbon electrode for electrochemical determination of adenine in the presence of guanine

Simultaneous determination of guanine and adenine in human saliva with graphite sparked screen-printed electrodes

Saliva represents one of the most useful biological samples for non-invasive testing of health status and diseases prognosis and therefore, the development of advanced sensors enabling the determination of biomarkers in unspiked human whole saliva is of immense importance. Herein, we report on the development of a screen-printed graphite sensor modified with carbon nanomaterials generated by spark discharge for the determination of guanine and adenine in unspiked human whole saliva. The designed sensor was developed with a "green", extremely simple, fast (16 s), fully automated "linear mode" sparking process implemented with a 2D positioning device. Carbon nanomaterial-modified surfaces exhibit outstanding electrocatalytic properties enabling the determination of guanine and adenine over the concentration range 5 - 1000 nM and 25 - 1000 nM, while achieving limits of detection (S/N 3) as low as 2 nM and 8 nM, respectively. The sensor was successfully applied to the determination of purine bases in unspiked human whole saliva following a simple assay protocol based on ultrafiltration that effectively alleviates biofouling issues. Recovery was 96-108%.

Simultaneous electrochemical detection of guanine and adenine using reduced graphene oxide decorated with AuPt nanoclusters

A rapid and sensitive electrochemical sensing platform is reported based on bimetallic gold-platinum nanoclusters (AuPtNCs) dispersed on reduced graphene oxide (rGO) for the simultaneous detection of guanine and adenine using square wave voltammetry (SWV). The synthesis of AuPtNCs-rGO nanocomposite was achieved by a simultaneous reduction of graphene oxide (GO) and metal ions (Au³⁺ and Pt⁴⁺) in an aqueous solution. The developed AuPtNCs-rGO electrochemical sensor with the optimized 50:50 bimetallic (Au:Pt) nanoclusters exhibited an outstanding electrocatalytic performance towards the simultaneous oxidation of guanine and adenine without the aid of any enzymes or mediators in physiological pH. The electrochemical sensor platform showed low detection limits of 60 nM and 100 nM (S/N = 3) for guanine and adenine, respectively, with high sensitivity and an extensive linear range from 1.0 μM to 0.2 mM for both guanine and adenine. The interference from the most common electrochemically active interferents, including ascorbic acid, uric acid, and dopamine, was almost negligible. The simultaneous sensing of guanine and adenine in denatured Salmon Sperm DNA sample was successfully achieved using the proposed platform, showing that the AuPtNCs-rGO nanocomposite could provide auspicious clinical diagnosis and biomedical applications.

A copper-based metal–organic framework/graphene nanocomposite for the sensitive and stable electrochemical detection of DNA bases

A simple and easy-operation electrode modification strategy was proposed using Cu-MOF/GO nanohybrids for physiologists and pathologists for the feasible and reliable simultaneous electrochemical detections of DNA bases, namely guanine and adenine.

Nanomaterial-based sensors

This chapter deals with the advancement of nanomaterial-based sensors in the last 10 years. The use of different types of nanomaterials, including graphene, carbon nanotubes, and metallic nanoparticles, was described, highlighting that graphene represents a rising star in the plethora of nanomaterials. Among the different transducers, the chapter describes the electrochemical and optical (bio)sensors, being the most promising devices. The use of materials at the nanodimension scale provides several improvements in terms of analytical features including sensitivity, rapidity of response, selectivity, and robustness, demonstrating the huge advantage of using the nanomaterials over the micromaterials in the development of smart and high-performant analytical tools.

Can the mechanical activation (polishing) of screen-printed electrodes enhance their electroanalytical response?

The mechanical activation (polishing) of screen-printed electrodes (SPEs) is explored and shown to exhibit an improved voltammetric response (in specific cases) when polished with either commonly available alumina slurry or diamond spray. Proof-of-concept is demonstrated for the electrochemical sensing of nitrite where an increase in the voltammetric current is found using both polishing protocols, exhibiting an improved limit of detection (3σ) and a two-fold increase in the electroanalytical sensitivity compared to the respective un-polished counterpart. It is found that mechanical activation/polishing increases the C/O ratio which significantly affects inner-sphere electrochemical probes only (whereas outer-sphere systems remain unaffected). Mechanical activation/polishing has the potential to be a simple pre-treatment technique that can be extended and routinely applied towards other analytes for an observable improvement in the electroanalytical response.

Facile synthesis of microporous sulfur-doped carbon spheres as electrodes for ultrasensitive detection of ascorbic acid in food and pharmaceutical products

The active interfacial surface of S-doped microporous carbon spheres strongly binds with ascorbic acid in food and pharmaceutical products.

Highly sensitive voltamperometric determination of pyritinol using carbon nanofiber/gold nanoparticle composite screen-printed carbon electrode

A novel and highly sensitive electrochemical method for the detection of pyritinol in pharmaceutical products and serum samples has been accomplished based on voltamperometric response of pyritinol in carbon nanofiber-gold nanoparticle (CNF-GNP)-modified screen-printed carbon electrode (SPCE). The electrochemical response of pyritinol to CNF-GNP-modified SPCE was studied by cyclic voltammetry and square-wave voltammetry (SWV). Under optimized working conditions, the novel sensor shows excellent voltamperometric response toward pyritinol. The SWV study shows significantly enhanced electrochemical response for pyritinol in CNF-GNP-modified SPCE providing high sensitivity to the novel sensor for pyritinol detection. The peak current for pyritinol is found to be linear with the concentration in the range 1.0×10^-8-5.0×10^-5 M with a detection limit of 6.23×10^-9 M using SWV as the detection method. The viability of the new developed sensor for the analytical purposes was studied by performing experiments on various commercial pharmaceutical products and blood serum samples, which yielded adequate recoveries of pyritinol. The novel electrochemical sensor provides high sensitivity, enhanced selectivity, good reproducibility and practical applicability.

Detection of Guanine and Adenine Using an Aminated Reduced Graphene Oxide Functional Membrane-Modified Glassy Carbon Electrode

A new electrochemical sensor based on a Nafion, aminated reduced graphene oxide and chitosan functional membrane-modified glassy carbon electrode was proposed for the simultaneous detection of adenine and guanine. Fourier transform-infrared spectrometry (FTIR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and electrochemical methods were utilized for the additional characterization of the membrane materials. The prepared electrode was utilized for the detection of guanine (G) and adenine (A). The anodic peak currents to G and A were linear in the concentrations ranging from 0.1 to 120 μM and 0.2 to 110 μM, respectively. The detection limits were found to be 0.1 μM and 0.2 μM, respectively. Moreover, the modified electrode could also be used to determine G and A in calf thymus DNA.

Graphene-based screen-printed electrochemical (bio)sensors and their applications: Efforts and criticisms

K.S. Novoselov in his Nobel lecture (December 8, 2010), described graphene as "more than just a flat crystal" and summarized the best possible impression of graphene with (i) it is the first example of 2D atomic crystals, (ii) it demonstrated unique electronic properties, thanks to charge carriers which mimic massless relativistic particles, and (iii) it has promise for a number of applications. The fascinating and unusual properties of this 2D material were indeed recently investigated and exploited in several disciplines including physics, medicine, and chemistry, indicating the extremely versatile and polyedric aspect of this nanomaterial. The utilization of nanomaterials, printed technology, and microfluidics in electroanalysis has resulted in a period that can be called the "Electroanalysis Renaissance" (Escarpa, 2012) in which graphene is without any doubt a forefront nanomaterial. The rise in affordable fabrication processes, along with the great dispersing attitude in a plenty of matrices, have made graphene powerful in large-scale production of electrochemical platforms. Herein, we overview the employment of graphene to customize and/or fabricate printable based (bio)sensors over the past 5 years, including several modification approaches such as drop casting, screen- and inkjet-printing, different strategies of graphene-based sensing, and applications as well. The objective of this review is to provide a critical perspective related to advantages and disadvantages of using graphene in biosensing tools, based on screen-printed sensors.

Recent advances in electrospun metal-oxide nanofiber based interfaces for electrochemical biosensing

Synthesis of various electrospun metal-oxide nanofibers and their application towards electrochemical enzymatic and enzyme-free biosensor platforms has been critically discussed.