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A paper-based electrochemiluminescence electrode as an aptamer-based cytosensor using PtNi@carbon dots as nanolabels for detection of cancer cells and for in-situ screening of anticancer drugs

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Abstract

A paper-based portable and disposable cyto-device was fabricated for the purpose of detecting cancer cells and in-situ screening of anticancer drugs. The device was prepared as follows: (a) Au@Pd paper electrodes were prepared by growing Au@Pd nanoparticles on cellulose; (b) the aptamer against MCF-7 cells was immobilized on the paper electrodes; (c) PtNi alloy particles were loaded with carbon dots to form a PtNi@C-dot composite acting as the ECL label, (d) concanavalin A (Con A) was labeled with the ECL label and then dropped on sensor surface carrying cancer cell. Con A can specifically recognize the mannose on the cancer cell surface. The assay is performed in the following way: (1) The aptamer-modified electrode is placed in a solution containing MCF-7 cancer cells; (2) buffer containing peroxodisulfate is added; (3) a potential sweep (from −0.5 to −1.8 V) is applied to the electrode, and ECL intensity is recorded. ECL intensity is related to the number of captured MCF-7 cells in the 480 to 2.0 × 107 cells⋅mL‾1 concentration range. The electrode was applied to design a screening method for anti-cancer drugs. This is accomplished by monitoring the number of apoptotic cancer cells after exposing the cells on the electrode to a drug-containing medium. In our perception, the method presented here has a wide range of potential applications in cancer diagnosis and treatment.

A paper-based portable and disposable cyto-device for the purposes of detecting cancer cells and in-situ screening of anticancer drugs was fabricated, using Au@Pd paper electrodes as working electrodes and PtNi@C-dot composite as signal amplification labels. Under optimal conditions, a wide detection range and a low detection limit were obtained through the cyto-device, and achieving the in-situ screening of anticancer drugs.

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Acknowledgments

This work was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (21475052, 21175058, 51273084).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, University of Jinan, Jinan, 250022, People’s Republic of China

    Ludan Wu, Yan Zhang, Yanhu Wang, Shenguang Ge, Haiyun Liu, Mei Yan & Jinghua Yu

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  1. Ludan Wu
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  2. Yan Zhang
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  3. Yanhu Wang
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  4. Shenguang Ge
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  5. Haiyun Liu
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  6. Mei Yan
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  7. Jinghua Yu
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Correspondence to Jinghua Yu.

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Wu, L., Zhang, Y., Wang, Y. et al. A paper-based electrochemiluminescence electrode as an aptamer-based cytosensor using PtNi@carbon dots as nanolabels for detection of cancer cells and for in-situ screening of anticancer drugs. Microchim Acta 183, 1873–1880 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00604-016-1827-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00604-016-1827-2

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