Nanoceria particles as catalytic amplifiers for alkaline phosphatase assays

We propose a novel system to enhance detection sensitivity of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) in electrochemical assays by using nanoceria particles as redox active catalytic amplifiers of ALP signals. The catalytic activity of nanoceria particles attributed to their dual oxidation state Ce(4+)/Ce(3+) and high oxygen mobility enabled oxidation of the products of the ALP-catalyzed reaction. A suite of spectroscopic and electrochemical methods, including UV-vis spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), dynamic light scattering (DLS), and cyclic voltammetry (CV) were used to characterize the interaction of nanoceria with the ALP-generated products. Spectrometric experiments demonstrate change in the oxidation state of nanoceria upon exposure to the hydrolytic products of ALP. Three enzymatically generated products of commonly used ALP substrates were detected at a screen printing electrode surface in the presence of nanoceria. Electrochemical experiments demonstrate signal amplification of the ALP activity assay by nanoceria for all three products, demonstrating remarkable sensitivity of this assay. The assay was optimized with respect to pH and buffer composition. Analytical characterization of the nanoceria-based ALP activity assay was established using a 1-naphthyl phosphate substrate. The proposed strategy can find widespread applications in sensing schemes involving ALP.