Abstract
The luminol-H2O2 system is widely applied in electrochemiluminescence (ECL) assays but has limited stability. We are presenting an alternative immunosensing strategy by making use of Au@Ag nanorods that mimic the enzyme peroxidase. It also makes use of the supercapacitive supporter NH4CoPO4 as a supporter substrate that facilitates ion movement due to its many nanogaps between the assembled nanoplates. It also plays a vital role for stabilizing the ECL signal of luminol. The immunosensor was constructed by first placing a chitosan film containing NH4CoPO4, Au@Ag and luminol on a glassy carbon electrode (GCE), and the immobilizing anti-CEA on its surface. ECL is generated via electrochemical reaction of luminol on the surface of the Au@Ag-luminol film in the presence of H2O2. The assay was evaluated with respect to effects of pH value, time and temperature of incubation, specificity, reproducibility, and stability in a lab setting. A linear relationship between ECL intensity and CEA concentration is found for the 0.1 pg · mL−1 to 380 ng · mL−1 range, and the lower detection limit is as low as 30 fg · mL−1. In our perception, this immunoassay has a large scope in that numerous other immunoassays will become feasible by using other antibodies and, possibly, aptamers.
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Acknowledgments
This study was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of China (No.21375047), the Natural Science Foundation of Shandong Province (No.ZR2013BL003) and the Natural Science Foundation of UJN (No. XKY1305). QW thanks the Special Foundation for Taishan Scholar Professorship of Shandong Province and UJN (No. TS20130937). All of the authors express their deep thanks.
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Zhang, Y., Lu, F., Yan, Z. et al. Electrochemiluminescence immunosensing strategy based on the use of Au@Ag nanorods as a peroxidase mimic and NH4CoPO4 as a supercapacitive supporter: Application to the determination of carcinoembryonic antigen. Microchim Acta 182, 1421–1429 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00604-015-1473-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00604-015-1473-0