Application of Carbon Nanomaterials in Biological Detection

A special issue of Nanomaterials (ISSN 2079-4991). This special issue belongs to the section "2D and Carbon Nanomaterials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 June 2021) | Viewed by 16917

Special Issue Editors

Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo - SP, Brazil
Interests: Analytical Chemistry Biosensors Food Quality; Medicine Medical Diagnostic
Sensors and Biosensors Group, Department of Chemistry, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Barcelona, Spain
Interests: bioanalytical chemistry and biosensing, design of electrochemical biosensing devices and emerging rapid test appropriate at community and primary-care level for clinical diagnosis and food safety in low resource settings

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Analytical chemistry is ubiquitous in biological sciences. The detection of biological molecules is of utmost importance in many crucial fields. Many strategies are applied by creative and enthusiast scientists. In this issue, we aim to show some of the possibilities making use of all different types of carbon nanomaterials. Innovative methodologies can be faster, more sensitive, more portable, cheaper or possess many other advantages according to analysts’ wishes.

I hope you can participate in this issue with an exciting submission

Prof. Luís Moreira Gonçalves
Prof. Maria Isabel Pividori Gurgo
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • analytical chemistry
  • bioanalysis
  • biosensing
  • carbon
  • electroanalysis
  • sensing

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

20 pages, 4468 KiB  
Article
Graphene for the Building of Electroanalytical Enzyme-Based Biosensors. Application to the Inhibitory Detection of Emerging Pollutants
by Marta Bonet-San-Emeterio, Noelia Felipe Montiel and Manel del Valle
Nanomaterials 2021, 11(8), 2094; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano11082094 - 18 Aug 2021
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2612
Abstract
Graphene and its derivates offer a wide range of possibilities in the electroanalysis field, mainly owing to their biocompatibility, low-cost, and easy tuning. This work reports the development of an enzymatic biosensor using reduced graphene oxide (RGO) as a key nanomaterial for the [...] Read more.
Graphene and its derivates offer a wide range of possibilities in the electroanalysis field, mainly owing to their biocompatibility, low-cost, and easy tuning. This work reports the development of an enzymatic biosensor using reduced graphene oxide (RGO) as a key nanomaterial for the detection of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs). RGO was obtained from the electrochemical reduction of graphene oxide (GO), an intermediate previously synthesized in the laboratory by a wet chemistry top-down approach. The extensive characterization of this material was carried out to evaluate its proper inclusion in the biosensor arrangement. The results demonstrated the presence of GO or RGO and their correct integration on the sensor surface. The detection of CECs was carried out by modifying the graphene platform with a laccase enzyme, turning the sensor into a more selective and sensitive device. Laccase was linked covalently to RGO using the remaining carboxylic groups of the reduction step and the carbodiimide reaction. After the calibration and characterization of the biosensor versus catechol, a standard laccase substrate, EDTA and benzoic acid were detected satisfactorily as inhibiting agents of the enzyme catalysis obtaining inhibition constants for EDTA and benzoic acid of 25 and 17 mmol·L−1, respectively, and a maximum inhibition percentage of the 25% for the EDTA and 60% for the benzoic acid. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Carbon Nanomaterials in Biological Detection)
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11 pages, 3482 KiB  
Article
Comparative Study of Gold and Carbon Nanoparticles in Nucleic Acid Lateral Flow Assay
by Juan Carlos Porras, Mireia Bernuz, Jennifer Marfa, Arnau Pallares-Rusiñol, Mercè Martí and María Isabel Pividori
Nanomaterials 2021, 11(3), 741; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano11030741 - 15 Mar 2021
Cited by 16 | Viewed by 3690
Abstract
A lateral flow assay (LFA) is a paper-based, point-of-need test designed to detect a specific analyte in complex samples in low-resource settings. Although LFA has been successfully used in different applications, its use is still limited when high sensitivity is required, especially in [...] Read more.
A lateral flow assay (LFA) is a paper-based, point-of-need test designed to detect a specific analyte in complex samples in low-resource settings. Although LFA has been successfully used in different applications, its use is still limited when high sensitivity is required, especially in the diagnosis of an early-stage condition. The limit of detection (LOD) is clearly related to the signal-generating system used to achieve the visual readout, in many cases involving nanoparticles coupled to a biomolecule, which, when combined, provides sensitivity and specificity, respectively. While colloidal gold is currently the most-used label, other detection systems are being developed. Carbon nanoparticles (CNPs) demonstrate outstanding features to improve the sensitivity of this technology by producing an increased contrast in the paper background. Based on the necessity of sensitivity improvement, the aim of this work is a comparative study, in terms of analytical performance, between commercial streptavidin gold nanoparticles (streptAv-AuNPs) and avidin carbon nanoparticles (Av-CNPs) in a nucleic acid lateral flow assay. The visual LOD of the method was calculated by serial dilution of the DNA template, ranging from 0.0 to 7 pg μL−1/1.5 × 104 CFU mL−1). The LFA achieved visual detection of as low as 2.2 × 10−2 pg μL−1 using Av-CNPs and 8.4 × 10−2 pg μL−1 using streptAv-AuNPs. These LODs could be obtained without the assistance of any instrumentation. The results demonstrate that CNPs showed an increased sensitivity, achieving the nanomolar range even by visual inspection. Furthermore, CNPs are the cheapest labels, and the suspensions are very stable and easy to modify. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Carbon Nanomaterials in Biological Detection)
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18 pages, 8090 KiB  
Article
3,4-Methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV) Sensing Based on Electropolymerized Molecularly Imprinted Polymers on Silver Nanoparticles and Carboxylated Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes
by Rosa A. S. Couto, Constantino Coelho, Bassim Mounssef, Jr., Sara F. de A. Morais, Camila D. Lima, Wallans T. P. dos Santos, Félix Carvalho, Cecília M. P. Rodrigues, Ataualpa A. C. Braga, Luís Moreira Gonçalves and M. Beatriz Quinaz
Nanomaterials 2021, 11(2), 353; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano11020353 - 01 Feb 2021
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 3029
Abstract
3,4-methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV) is a harmful and controlled synthetic cathinone used as a psychostimulant drug and as sport-enhancing substance. A sensor was developed for the direct analysis of MDPV by transducing its oxidation signal by means of an electropolymerized molecularly imprinted polymer (e-MIP) built [...] Read more.
3,4-methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV) is a harmful and controlled synthetic cathinone used as a psychostimulant drug and as sport-enhancing substance. A sensor was developed for the direct analysis of MDPV by transducing its oxidation signal by means of an electropolymerized molecularly imprinted polymer (e-MIP) built in-situ on the screen-printed carbon electrode’s (SPCE) surface previously covered with multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and silver nanoparticles (AgNPs). Benzene-1,2-diamine was used as the functional monomer while the analyte was used as the template monomer. Each step of the sensor’s development was studied by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) in a solution containing ferricyanide, however no redox probe was required for the actual MDPV measurements. The interaction between the poly(o-phenylenediamine) imprinted polymer and MDPV was studied by density-functional theory (DFT) methods. The SPCE-MWCNT-AgNP-MIP sensor responded adequately to the variation of MDPV concentration. It was shown that AgNPs enhanced the electrochemical signal by around a 3-fold factor. Making use of square-wave voltammetry (SWV) the developed sensor provided a limit of detection (LOD) of 1.8 μmol L–1. The analytical performance of the proposed sensor paves the way to the development of a portable device for MDPV on-site sensing to be applied in forensic and doping analysis. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Carbon Nanomaterials in Biological Detection)
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14 pages, 2335 KiB  
Article
Rational Design of an Ion-Imprinted Polymer for Aqueous Methylmercury Sorption
by Ruddy L. M. Mesa, Javier E. L. Villa, Sabir Khan, Rafaella R. Alves Peixoto, Marcelo A. Morgano, Luís Moreira Gonçalves, Maria D. P. T. Sotomayor and Gino Picasso
Nanomaterials 2020, 10(12), 2541; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano10122541 - 17 Dec 2020
Cited by 18 | Viewed by 2274
Abstract
Methylmercury (MeHg+) is a mercury species that is very toxic for humans, and its monitoring and sorption from environmental samples of water are a public health concern. In this work, a combination of theory and experiment was used to rationally synthesize [...] Read more.
Methylmercury (MeHg+) is a mercury species that is very toxic for humans, and its monitoring and sorption from environmental samples of water are a public health concern. In this work, a combination of theory and experiment was used to rationally synthesize an ion-imprinted polymer (IIP) with the aim of the extraction of MeHg+ from samples of water. Interactions among MeHg+ and possible reaction components in the pre-polymerization stage were studied by computational simulation using density functional theory. Accordingly, 2-mercaptobenzimidazole (MBI) and 2-mercaptobenzothiazole (MBT), acrylic acid (AA) and ethanol were predicted as excellent sulfhydryl ligands, a functional monomer and porogenic solvent, respectively. Characterization studies by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) revealed the obtention of porous materials with specific surface areas of 11 m2 g−1 (IIP–MBI–AA) and 5.3 m2 g−1 (IIP–MBT–AA). Under optimized conditions, the maximum adsorption capacities were 157 µg g−1 (for IIP–MBI–AA) and 457 µg g−1 (for IIP–MBT–AA). The IIP–MBT–AA was selected for further experiments and application, and the selectivity coefficients were MeHg+/Hg2+ (0.86), MeHg+/Cd2+ (260), MeHg+/Pb2+ (288) and MeHg+/Zn2+ (1510), highlighting the material’s high affinity for MeHg+. The IIP was successfully applied to the sorption of MeHg+ in river and tap water samples at environmentally relevant concentrations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Carbon Nanomaterials in Biological Detection)
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17 pages, 5616 KiB  
Article
Carbon Dots for Intracellular pH Sensing with Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Microscopy
by Maojia Huang, Xinyue Liang, Zixiao Zhang, Jing Wang, Yiyan Fei, Jiong Ma, Songnan Qu and Lan Mi
Nanomaterials 2020, 10(4), 604; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano10040604 - 25 Mar 2020
Cited by 28 | Viewed by 4523
Abstract
The monitoring of intracellular pH is of great importance for understanding intracellular trafficking and functions. It has various limitations for biosensing based on the fluorescence intensity or spectra study. In this research, pH-sensitive carbon dots (CDs) were employed for intracellular pH sensing with [...] Read more.
The monitoring of intracellular pH is of great importance for understanding intracellular trafficking and functions. It has various limitations for biosensing based on the fluorescence intensity or spectra study. In this research, pH-sensitive carbon dots (CDs) were employed for intracellular pH sensing with fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) for the first time. FLIM is a highly sensitive method that is used to detect a microenvironment and it can overcome the limitations of biosensing methods based on fluorescence intensity. The different groups on the CDs surfaces changing with pH environments led to different fluorescence lifetime values. The CDs aqueous solution had a gradual change from 1.6 ns to 3.7 ns in the fluorescence lifetime with a pH range of 2.6–8.6. Similar fluorescence lifetime changes were found in pH buffer-treated living cells. The detection of lysosomes, cytoplasm, and nuclei in living cells was achieved by measuring the fluorescence lifetime of CDs. In particular, a phasor FLIM analysis was used to improve the pH imaging. Moreover, the effects of the coenzymes, amino acids, and proteins on the fluorescence lifetime of CDs were examined in order to mimic the complex microenvironment inside the cells. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Carbon Nanomaterials in Biological Detection)
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