A novel bi-enzyme electrochemical biosensor for selective and sensitive determination of methyl salicylate

An amperometric sensor based on a bi-enzyme modified electrode was fabricated to detect methyl salicylate, a volatile organic compound released by pathogen-infected plants via systemic response. The detection is based on cascadic conversion reactions that result in an amperometric electrochemical signal. The bi-enzyme electrode is made of alcohol oxidase and horseradish peroxidase enzymes immobilized on to a carbon nanotube matrix through a molecular tethering method. Methyl salicylate undergoes hydrolysis to form methanol, which is consumed by alcohol oxidase to form formaldehyde while simultaneously reducing oxygen to hydrogen peroxide. The hydrogen peroxide will be further reduced to water by horseradish peroxidase, which results in an amperometric signal via direct electron transfer. The bi-enzyme biosensor was evaluated by cyclic voltammetry and constant potential amperometry using hydrolyzed methyl salicylate as the analyte. The sensitivity of the bi-enzyme biosensor as determined by cyclic voltammetry and constant potential amperometry were 112.37 and 282.82μAcm(-2)mM(-1) respectively, and the corresponding limits of detection were 22.95 and 0.98μM respectively. Constant potential amperometry was also used to evaluate durability, repeatability and interference from other compounds. Wintergreen oil was used for real sample study to establish the application of the bi-enzyme sensor for selective determination of plant pathogen infections.