(Keynote, Digital Presentation) Why Au Nanoparticles Could Behave As a Glucose Oxidase Mimic

Abstract

The Au nanoparticle has been found to be the excellent glucose oxidase mimic, while the catalytic process has rarely been studied. Here, we revealed that the process of glucose oxidation catalyzed by Au nanoparticles is the same as that of natural glucose oxidase, namely, a two-step reaction including the dehydrogenation of glucose and the subsequent reduction of O2 to H2O2 by two electrons. Pt, Pd, Ru, Rh, and Ir nanoparticles can also catalyze the dehydrogenation of glucose, except that O2 is preferably reduced to H2O. Using the electron transfer property of noble metal nanoparticles, we overcame the limitation that H2O2 must be produced in the traditional two-step glucose assay and realized the rapid colorimetric detection of glucose. Noble metal nanoparticles have also been found to mimic various enzymatic electron transfer reactions including cytochrome c, coenzymes as well as nitrobenzene reductions.