Simultaneous Unlocking Optoelectronic and Interfacial Properties of C₆₀ for Ultrasensitive Immunosensing by Coupling...

Due to exceptional electron-accepting ability, light-absorption, and a delocalized conjugated structure, buckminsterfullerene (C₆₀) has attracted fascinating interest in the field of organic solar cells. However, poor delocalization and accumulation of electrons for pristine C₆₀ in physiological aqueous solution and difficulties in conjugation with biomolecules limit its extended photovoltaic applications in bioassay. Herein, we reported the noncovalent coupling of C₆₀ to an electronically complementary porphyrin-derived metal-organic framework (PCN-224) with carboxyl-group terminals. Such assembly not only offered a friendly interface for bioconjugation but also resulted in a long-range ordering C₆₀@PCN-224 donor-acceptor system that demonstrated an unprecedented photocurrent enhancement up to 10 times with respect to each component. As an example, by further cooperating with Nanobodies, the as-prepared C₆₀@PCN-224 was applied to a photoelectrochemical (PEC) immunosensor for S100 calcium-binding protein B with by far the most promising detection activities. This work may open a new venue to unlock the great potential of C₆₀ in PEC biosensing with excellent performances.