An antifouling electrochemiluminescence sensor based on mesoporous CuO₂@SiO₂/luminol nanocomposite and co-reactant of...

A novel electrochemiluminescence (ECL) sensing platform was developed for the detection of neuron-specific enolase (NSE), based on the nanocomposite of mesoporous silica encapsulated CuO₂ nanoparticles and electrostatically attracted luminol. An antifouling membrane of polyvinylidene fluoride modified by polyethyleneimine and dopamine was introduced to improve the immobilization of nanocomposite and the stability of ECL signal; Au nanoparticles were loaded on the membrane surface for binding the antibody. The CuO₂ nanoparticles were capable of supplying H₂O₂, while the amino ionic liquid functionalized boron nitride quantum dots as co-reactant of luminol could effectively enhance the ECL signal. The resulting ECL immunosensing platform thus showed excellent performance. Over the concentration range of 5-500 ng/mL, it presented a good linear response; the detection limit was down to 24.5 pg/mL. In addition, it had high selectivity and stability. The sensor has been successfully applied to determine target NSE in human serum samples. This work provides some insights into the further design of high-performance ECL sensors.