Development of a label-free electrochemiluminescence biosensor for the sensitive detection of porcine gelatin using carbon nanostructured materials

Abstract

In this study, a carbon nanofiber fabricated screen-printed electrode (CNF-SPE) was modified using carbon nano-horns (CNHs) and nafion (NAF) for the development of a label-free electrochemiluminescence (ECL) biosensor. The goal was to design a robust and sensitive biosensor for the detection of porcine gelatin in food products, which will globally have a significant impact on the halal food industry. Gelatin derived from porcine has major religious and ethical concerns worldwide and its use is gradually increasing in food-based products without proper monitoring and observation. Henceforth, a biosensor was developed over a CNFs-SPE/CNHs/NAF platform by immobilizing biorecognition molecules (anti-gelatin), followed by non-specific blocking by 0.1% bovine serum albumin (BSA). Further, energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) and Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy were employed to characterize the CNHs/NAF nanocomposite. Moreover, biosensor development was studied both by ECL and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Interestingly, the developed biosensor CNFs-SPE/CNHs/NAF/antigelatin/ BSA demonstrated extensive linearity of 1 pg mL-1 to 8 ng mL-1 with a detection limit of 1 pg mL-1. Therefore, with a demonstrated wide linear range and low detection limit, this proposed biosensor could be used to analyze real food samples. Furthermore, the biosensor showed remarkable reproducibility for porcine gelatin detection.

Publication
Sensors and Diagnostics