Electron transfer from diamond electrodes to heme peptide and peroxidase

Direct electron transfer from boron-doped diamond electrodes to heme undecapeptide and horseradish peroxidase (HRP) was examined and evaluated for the application to H2O2 biosensors. As-grown and oxygen plasma-treated diamond electrodes on which heme peptide is adsorbed exhibited cathodic current responses to H2O2 on the basis of the direct electron transfer. In a comparative study of carbon electrodes on which heme peptide was adsorbed, an oxygen plasma-treated diamond electrode exhibited responses comparable with those of an edge-oriented pyrolytic graphite (EOPG) electrode, despite much smaller roughness. However, electron transfer to compounds I and II of HRP from the diamond electrodes was much slower than that from EOPG or glassy carbon, suggesting that the pi electrons of an sp2 carbon may play an important role in the direct electron transfer to the heme moiety of HRP. To examine the applicability of heme peptide-modified diamond electrodes to oxidase-based biosensors, anodic current responses of the oxygen plasma-treated diamond electrode to possible interfering agents, ascorbic acid and uric acid, were examined and compared with those of EOPG. Since the diamond electrode exhibited much less sensitivity to those interfering agents, the heme peptide-modified diamond electrode should be a promising H2O2 biosensor for the application to oxidase-based biosensors.