NiO Nanoparticles for Electrochemical Insulin Detection

Area of Science:

• Electrochemistry
• Nanomaterials Science
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Diabetes mellitus is a prevalent global disease with significant healthcare costs.
• Current diagnostic methods for diabetes can be expensive and time-consuming.
• There is a critical need for affordable, rapid, and user-friendly diagnostic sensors.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and characterize a novel electrochemical sensor for insulin determination.
• To evaluate the performance of nickel oxide (NiO) nanoparticles electrodeposited on a carbon electrode for insulin detection.
• To assess the sensor's potential for clinical application in diabetes diagnosis.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of a carbon electrode modified with electrodeposited NiO nanoparticles.
• Characterization of electrode morphology and surface composition using SEM, EDX, and XPS.
• Electrochemical measurements (voltammetry and amperometry) to study insulin determination mechanism and kinetics.
• Evaluation of sensor performance including linear range, limit of detection, and sensitivity.
• Testing sensor stability and performance in bovine blood serum.

Main Results:

• The NiO-nanoparticle-modified carbon electrode demonstrated effective insulin detection.
• The sensor exhibited a wide linear range (600 nM to 10 µM) and a low limit of detection (19.6 nM).
• High sensitivity (7.06 µA/µM), good stability (30 cycles), and functionality in blood serum were achieved.

Conclusions:

• The developed NiO-nanoparticle-modified carbon electrode shows high promise as a sensitive and stable sensor for insulin detection.
• This electrochemical sensor presents a viable, cost-effective, and rapid approach for diabetes diagnosis.
• The sensor's ability to function in complex biological matrices like blood serum supports its potential for clinical applications.