Biomedical Applications of Carbon Nanomaterial Modified Sensors: A Promising Future

Abstract

Electrochemistry has always provided analytical techniques characterized by instrumental simplicity, moderate cost and portability. Over the last decade the use of nanomaterials has had a great impact on biosensing. One major advantage of nanomaterials is their potential to be utilized as non-invasive diagnostic tools. Another is the capacity for combining multiple modalities within a single probe. Nanomaterials are also ideally suited to be applied as drug-delivery systems, which may facilitate the development of a new generation of theranostics with exquisitely sensitive chemical and biological sensing capabilities. Carbon based nanomaterials are the most widely used in electroanalytic and electrocatalytic sensing applications. A critical feature that has driven the impressive success of the use of carbon based nanomaterials for electroanalytical applications most likely relates to the ability of these nanomaterials to promote electron transfer in electrochemical reactions. A number of electrochemical strategies have been explored in the development of nanomaterials based electrochemical sensors for biomedical applications. Voltammetric techniques have been extremely useful in measuring blood levels, metabolites and the urinary excretion of drugs following low doses. Carbon nanomaterials offer unique advantages that span several domains, such as a high surface-to-volume ratio, high electrical conductivity, chemical stability, biocompatibility and robust mechanical strength. Thus, they are frequently incorporated as sensing elements. Carbon nanomaterials based sensors generally have higher sensitivities and lower detection limits than their conventional counterparts. The morphologies of carbon based nanomaterials constitute an additional critical factor that enables their functionality and stable operation in the design of efficient electrochemical sensors; all of which impart influences on their electron transport kinetics. Biosensors that are based on carbon nanotubes provide a significant avenue for the detection of biomolecules for in vivo and in vitro applications. Sensors that are based on carbon nanotubes provide a significant avenue for the detection of biomolecules for in vivo and in vitro applications. Efforts have been made in our group to develop new-fangled approaches for the electrochemical detection of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug; antiviral drug and natural alkaloid related to hepatocellular carcinoma. The proposed nanomaterial based sensors exhibited pronounced analytical performance and provided a new and powerful paradigm in terms of novel and augmented functionality that encompasses a wide variety of applications in clinical diagnostics and biological research. The developed electrochemical sensors comprised of novel nanomaterials had great potential for enhancing and superseding the capabilities of current molecular diagnostics by allowing rapid and highly accurate diagnoses, the integration of diagnostic and therapeutic capacities and the realization of personalized medicine.