Introduction of a thrombin sensor based on its interaction with dabigatran as an oral direct thrombin inhibitor

Dabigatran (DAB) is a direct thrombin inhibitor used for preventing blood clots and emboli after orthopedic surgery. The DAB - thrombin interaction was followed by fluorescence and UV-Vis spectroscopic methods. The binding of DAB to thrombin was also modeled by the molecular docking method. The obtained experimental results were consistent with theoretical results. The voltammetric method was also tested for DAB - thrombin interaction. Based on voltammetric findings, carbon paste electrode containing graphite powder, paraffin oil, MWCNTs, and DAB was constructed and used for thrombin monitoring after investigation of the DAB oxidation mechanism for the first time. The decrease in the linear sweep voltammetric (LSV) peak current of DAB in the presence of thrombin was utilized for the thrombin analysis. The calibration plot was linear in the concentration range of 1 to 70 nM (R² = 0.9992) by LSV technique with a detection limit of 0.3 nM. The applicability of the proposed sensor was evaluated by the determination of thrombin in human serum as a real sample.