Competition between enzymatic and non-enzymatic electrochemical determination of cholesterol

Abstract

Cholesterol is considered an essential component in animal bodies that plays a vital role in hormone production and creating vitamin D. The elevated blood cholesterol level increases the possibility of heart disease. Consequently, the clinical diagnosis of cholesterol concentration is critical for human health care. The electrochemical sensor is one of the leading techniques for detecting cholesterol in biological fluids with high accuracy. Therefore, this review included comparative insights into the enzymatic and non-enzymatic techniques for electrochemical sensing. We discussed the recent progress in the electrochemical determination of cholesterol via various materials, e.g., metal composites, carbonaceous materials, ionic liquid crystals, and polymers. We explained electrochemical sensing techniques like amperometric, potentiometric, conductometric, and impedimetric methods. Furthermore, various enzyme-immobilization approaches were reported, like surface binding and encapsulation. The synergistic effect between the electrode surface and enzymes was demonstrated to clarify the detection mechanism. The review article summarized the outcome detection limits and linear range of detection for various surfaces for enzymatic and non-enzymatic electrochemical techniques within the last twenty years.