Diffuse reflectance infrared spectroscopic identification of dispersant/particle bonding mechanisms in functional inks.

In additive manufacturing, or 3D printing, material is deposited drop by drop, to create micron to macroscale layers. A typical inkjet ink is a colloidal dispersion containing approximately ten components including solvent, the nano to micron scale particles which will comprise the printed layer, polymeric dispersants to stabilize the particles, and polymers to tune layer strength, surface tension and viscosity. To rationally and efficiently formulate such an ink, it is crucial to know how the components interact. Specifically, which polymers bond to the particle surfaces and how are they attached? Answering this question requires an experimental procedure that discriminates between polymer adsorbed on the particles and free polymer. Further, the method must provide details about how the functional groups of the polymer interact with the particle. In this protocol, we show how to employ centrifugation to separate particles with adsorbed polymer from the rest of the ink, prepare the separated samples for spectroscopic measurement, and use Diffuse Reflectance Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (DRIFTS) for accurate determination of dispersant/particle bonding mechanisms. A significant advantage of this methodology is that it provides high level mechanistic detail using only simple, commonly available laboratory equipment. This makes crucial data available to almost any formulation laboratory. The method is most useful for inks composed of metal, ceramic, and metal oxide particles in the range of 100 nm or greater. Because of the density and particle size of these inks, they are readily separable with centrifugation. Further, the spectroscopic signatures of such particles are easy to distinguish from absorbed polymer. The primary limitation of this technique is that the spectroscopy is performed ex-situ on the separated and dried particles as opposed to the particles in dispersion. However, results from attenuated total reflectance spectra of the wet separated particles provide evidence for the validity of the DRIFTS measurement.

RNA aptamer-based electrochemical biosensor for selective and label-free analysis of dopamine.

The inherent redox activity of dopamine enables its direct electrochemical in vivo analysis ( Venton , B. J.; Wightman, M. R. Anal. Chem. 2003, 75, 414A). However, dopamine analysis is complicated by the interference from other electrochemically active endogenous compounds present in the brain, including dopamine precursors and metabolites and other neurotransmitters (NT). Here we report an electrochemical RNA aptamer-based biosensor for analysis of dopamine in the presence of other NT. The biosensor exploits a specific binding of dopamine by the RNA aptamer, immobilized at a cysteamine-modified Au electrode, and further electrochemical oxidation of dopamine. Specific recognition of dopamine by the aptamer allowed a selective amperometric detection of dopamine within the physiologically relevant 100 nM to 5 µM range in the presence of competitive concentrations of catechol, epinephrine, norepinephrine, 3,4-dihydroxy-phenylalanine (L-DOPA), 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC), methyldopamine, and tyramine, which gave negligible signals under conditions of experiments (electroanalysis at 0.185 V vs Ag/AgCl). The interference from ascorbic and uric acids was eliminated by application of a Nafion-coated membrane. The aptasensor response time was <1 s, and the sensitivity of analysis was 62 nA µM(-1) cm(-2). The proposed design of the aptasensor, based on electrostatic interactions between the positively charged cysteamine-modified electrode and the negatively charged aptamer, may be used as a general strategy not to restrict the conformational freedom and binding properties of surface-bound aptamers and, thus, be applicable for the development of other aptasensors.

Effect of the DNA end of tethering to electrodes on electron transfer in methylene blue-labeled DNA duplexes.

Electron transfer (ET) in redox-labeled double-stranded (ds) DNA tethered to electrodes through the alkanethiol linker at either the 3' or 5' DNA end and bearing methylene blue (MB) conjugated to the opposite end of DNA is shown to depend on the DNA end of tethering to electrodes. For 3' tethering, a nanoscale diffusion of the positively charged MB redox probe (and thus of the individual DNA molecules) to the negatively charged electrode surface provided the highest apparent diffusion and ET rates as a result of the tilting of 3'-tethered DNA (as compared to 5'-tethered DNA) versus the normal to the surface. Dynamic values of the tilting angle varied between 57 and 45° for 16-mer and 22-mer 3'-tethered DNA, and 5'-tethering was correlated with an upright orientation of DNA at the electrode surface. The values of the diffusion coefficient D(MB) corrected for tilting angles were similar for 5'- and 3'-tethered DNA and ranged between 5.4 × 10(-12) and 2.5 × 10(-12) cm(2) s(-1), whereas the ET rate constant k(ET)(dif) fit the 4.7 × 10(-6)-10.3 × 10(-6) cm s(-1) range for 22-mer and 16-mer dsDNA, respectively. Those values, when related to the nanometer (10(-7) cm) diffusion distances (the length of the studied DNA), allow relatively fast diffusion-limited ET at an apparent rate that may exceed the rate of the corresponding surface-confined ET process. This phenomenon is of particular importance for molecular electronics and electrochemical genosensor development.

Construction of a carbon nanocomposite electrode based on amino acids functionalized gold nanoparticles for trace electrochemical detection of mercury.

A simple, highly sensitive and selective carbon nanocomposite electrode has been developed for the electrochemical trace determination of mercury. This mercury nanocomposite sensor was designed by incorporation of thiolated amino acids capped AuNps into the carbon ionic liquid electrode (CILE) which provides remarkably improved sensitivity and selectivity for the electrochemical stripping assay of Hg(II). Mercury ions are expected to interact with amino acids through cooperative metal-ligand interaction to form a stable complex which provides a sensitive approach for electrochemical detection of Hg(II) in the presence of other metal ions. The detection limit was found to be 2.3 nM (S/N = 3) that is lower than the permitted value of Hg(II) reported by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) limit of Hg(II) for drinkable water. The proposed nanocomposite electrode exhibits good applicability for monitoring Hg(II) in tap and waste water.

"Off-on" electrochemical hairpin-DNA-based genosensor for cancer diagnostics.

A simple and robust "off-on" signaling genosensor platform with improved selectivity for single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) detection based on the electronic DNA hairpin molecular beacons has been developed. The DNA beacons were immobilized onto gold electrodes in their folded states through the alkanethiol linker at the 3'-end, while the 5'-end was labeled with a methylene blue (MB) redox probe. A typical "on-off" change of the electrochemical signal was observed upon hybridization of the 27-33 nucleotide (nt) long hairpin DNA to the target DNA, in agreement with all the hitherto published data. Truncation of the DNA hairpin beacons down to 20 nts provided improved genosensor selectivity for SNP and allowed switching of the electrochemical genosensor response from the on-off to the off-on mode. Switching was consistent with the variation in the mechanism of the electron transfer reaction between the electrode and the MB redox label, for the folded beacon being characteristic of the electrochemistry of adsorbed species, while for the "open" duplex structure being formally controlled by the diffusion of the redox label within the adsorbate layer. The relative current intensities of both processes were governed by the length of the formed DNA duplex, potential scan rate, and apparent diffusion coefficient of the redox species. The off-on genosensor design used for detection of a cancer biomarker TP53 gene sequence favored discrimination between the healthy and SNP-containing DNA sequences, which was particularly pronounced at short hybridization times.

DNA interactions with a Methylene Blue redox indicator depend on the DNA length and are sequence specific.

A DNA molecular beacon approach was used for the analysis of interactions between DNA and Methylene Blue (MB) as a redox indicator of a hybridization event. DNA hairpin structures of different length and guanine (G) content were immobilized onto gold electrodes in their folded states through the alkanethiol linker at the 5'-end. Binding of MB to the folded hairpin DNA was electrochemically studied and compared with binding to the duplex structure formed by hybridization of the hairpin DNA to a complementary DNA strand. Variation of the electrochemical signal from the DNA-MB complex was shown to depend primarily on the DNA length and sequence used: the G-C base pairs were the preferential sites of MB binding in the duplex. For short 20 nts long DNA sequences, the increased electrochemical response from MB bound to the duplex structure was consistent with the increased amount of bound and electrochemically readable MB molecules (i.e. MB molecules that are available for the electron transfer (ET) reaction with the electrode). With longer DNA sequences, the balance between the amounts of the electrochemically readable MB molecules bound to the hairpin DNA and to the hybrid was opposite: a part of the MB molecules bound to the long-sequence DNA duplex seem to be electrochemically mute due to long ET distance. The increasing electrochemical response from MB bound to the short-length DNA hybrid contrasts with the decreasing signal from MB bound to the long-length DNA hybrid and allows an "off"-"on" genosensor development.

Synthesis and application of a triazene-ferrocene modifier for immobilization and characterization of oligonucleotides at electrodes.

A new DNA modifier containing triazene, ferrocene, and activated ester functionalities was synthesized and applied for electrochemical grafting and characterization of DNA at glassy carbon (GC) and gold electrodes. The modifier was synthesized from ferrocenecarboxylic acid by attaching a phenyltriazene derivative to one of the ferrocene Cp rings, while the other Cp ring containing the carboxylic acid was converted to an activated ester. The modifier was conjugated to an amine-modified DNA sequence. For immobilization of the conjugate at Au or GC electrodes, the triazene was activated by dimethyl sulfate for release of the diazonium salt. The salt was reductively converted to the aryl radical which was readily immobilized at the surface. DNA grafted onto electrodes exhibited remarkable hybridization properties, as detected through a reversible shift in the redox potential of the Fc redox label upon repeated hybridization/denaturation procedures with a complementary target DNA sequence. By using a methylene blue (MB) labeled target DNA sequence the hybridization could also be followed through the MB redox potential. Electrochemical studies demonstrated that grafting through the triazene modifier can successfully compete with existing protocols for DNA immobilization through the commonly used alkanethiol linkers and diazonium salts. Furthermore, the triazene modifier provides a practical one-step immobilization procedure.

Simultaneous electrochemical determination of glutathione and glutathione disulfide at a nanoscale copper hydroxide composite carbon ionic liquid electrode.

Direct simultaneous electrochemical determination of glutathione (GSH) and glutathione disulfide (GSSG) has been presented using a nanoscale copper hydroxide carbon ionic liquid composite electrode. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the simultaneous determination of these two biologically important compounds based on their direct electrochemical oxidation. Incorporation of copper(II) hydroxide nanostructures in the composite electrode results in complexation of Cu(II) with the thiol group of GSH and leads to a significant decrease in GSH oxidation overpotential, while an anodic peak corresponding to the direct oxidation of GSSG as the product of GSH oxidation is observed at higher overvoltages. Low detection limits of 30 nM for GSH and 15 nM for GSSG were achieved based on a signal-to-noise ratio of 3. The proposed method is free from interference of cysteine, homocysteine, ascorbic acid (AA), and uric acid (UA). No electrode surface fouling was observed during successive scans. Stability, high sensitivity, and low detection limits made the proposed electrode applicable for the analysis of biological fluids.

Fabrication of a glucose sensor based on a novel nanocomposite electrode.

The direct electrocatalytic oxidation of glucose in alkaline medium at nanoscale nickel hydroxide modified carbon ionic liquid electrode (CILE) has been investigated. Enzyme free electro-oxidation of glucose have greatly been enhanced at nanoscale Ni(OH)(2) as a result of electrocatalytic effect of Ni(+2)/Ni(+3) redox couple. The sensitivity to glucose was evaluated as 202 microA mM(-1)cm(-2). From 50 microM to 23 mM of glucose can be selectively measured using platelet-like Ni(OH)(2) nanoscale modified CILE with a detection limit of 6 microM (S/N=3). The nanoscale nickel hydroxide modified electrode is relatively insensitive to electroactive interfering species such as ascorbic acid (AA), and uric acid (UA) which are commonly found in blood samples. Long-term stability, high sensitivity and selectivity as well as good reproducibility and high resistivity towards electrode fouling resulted in an ideal inexpensive amperometric glucose biosensor applicable for complex matrices.