Highly stable luminescent europium-doped calcium phosphate nanoparticles for creatinine quantification

The determination of creatinine levels is essential for the detection of renal and muscular dysfunction. Luminescent nanoparticles are emerging as fast, cheap and highly selective sensors for the detection and quantification of creatinine. Nevertheless, current nanosensors only have a short shelf life due to their poor chemical and colloidal stability, which limits their clinical functionality. In this work, we have developed a highly stable, selective and sensitive nanosensor based on europium-doped, amorphous calcium phosphate nanoparticles (Eu-ACP) for the determination of creatinine by luminescence spectroscopy. The colloidal stability of Eu-ACP nanoparticles in aqueous solutions was optimised to ensure a constant signal after up to 4 months in storage. The luminescence intensity of Eu-ACP decreased linearly with the creatinine concentration over the range of 1-120 μM (R² = 0.995). This concentration-response relationship was used to determine creatinine levels in real urine samples resulting in good recovery percentages. Significantly, selectivity assays indicated that none of the potential interfering species provoked discernible changes in the luminescence intensity.