DEVELOPMENT OF NANOMATERIAL MODIFIED FLEXIBLE BIOSENSOR TOWARDS POINT OF CARE DIAGNOSTICS

Abstract

We report results of the studies related to the fabrication of a novel, flexible, label-free, low-cost transducer platform comprising of Molybdenum disulfide, a transition metal dichalcogenide hydrothermally synthesized on a Whatman-1 filter paper. The obtained conducting paper has been employed for the detection and monitoring of HER-2, a widely used breast cancer biomarker. Monoclonal anti-HER-2 antibodies are immobilized via physisorption on the surface of the obtained transducer platform and BSA is then used to block the non-specific active sites, thereby producing the BSA/Anti-HER-2/MoS2/Cellulose immunoelectrode. The structural and morphological characteristics of the fabricated composites have been studied via XRD (X-ray diffraction), FT-IR (Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy) and FESEM (Field emission scanning electron microscopy) and AFM (Atomic force microscopy) studies. Further elemental and nd electrochemical studies have been performed using UV visible spectroscopy, XPS (X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy) and Chronoamperometry studies. The electrochemical sensing studies performed on the BSA/Anti-HER2/MoS2/Paper immunoelectrode revealed that the proposed biosensor can detect HER-2 over a wide linear range (0.1-500 ng ml-1), with an appreciable sensitivity of 78 μA ml ng-1 cm-2 and a lower detection limit of 0.07 ng ml-1. Hence, this paper based biosensor is a promising alternative to conventional medical diagnostics of breast cancer due to combined advantages of the cellulose substrate such as being eco-friendly, biodegradable, low cost, flexible, foldable, lightweight and having a shorter fabrication time. Thus, our proposed biosensor offers exciting opportunities for future Point-of Care diagnosis and monitoring of breast cancer development.