An electrochemical sarcosine sensor based on biomimetic recognition

Area of Science:

• Electrochemistry
• Biomarker Detection
• Materials Science

Background:

• Prostate cancer diagnosis relies on biomarkers like sarcosine (Sar).
• Enzymatic sensors for Sar face challenges with cost and stability.
• Biomimetic approaches offer potential advantages over traditional enzymatic sensors.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a stable and sensitive nonenzymatic electrochemical sensor for sarcosine detection.
• To utilize riboflavin as an enzyme mimic for sarcosine oxidase.
• To enhance sensor performance through novel material modification.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of a modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE) with graphene-chitosan (GR) composite.
• Incorporation of gold-platinum bimetallic nanoparticles within a polypyrrole (PPy) matrix.
• Electrodeposition of riboflavin (Rf) onto the AuPt-PPy/GR/GCE surface for biomimetic sensing.

Main Results:

• The developed sensor demonstrated high sensitivity and selectivity for sarcosine at approximately 0.61 V.
• The sensor exhibited a wide detection range of 2.5–600 μM with a low detection limit of 0.68 μM.
• Successful application in determining sarcosine in spiked urine samples with excellent recovery rates (98.0%-103.2%).

Conclusions:

• The riboflavin-modified electrode serves as an effective nonenzymatic sensor for sarcosine.
• This biomimetic sensor overcomes limitations of enzymatic sensors, offering improved stability and cost-effectiveness.
• The developed sensor shows promise for practical clinical applications in prostate cancer biomarker detection.