A universal protein immobilization method to construct responsive photonic hydrogels with enhanced sensing...

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Sensor Technology

Background:

• Photonic crystal (PC) protein hydrogel sensors integrate protein hydrogels with PC platforms, offering advantages for resource-limited settings.
• Existing sensors face limitations in protein diversity and long-term matrix stability.
• Developing robust and versatile protein-based sensors is crucial for advancing diagnostics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce an innovative acrylated protein method for creating stable, two-dimensional (2D) PC hydrogel sensors.
• To demonstrate the versatility of this method using different proteins (horseradish peroxidase and bovine serum albumin) for detecting various analytes.
• To enhance the stability and applicability of PC protein hydrogel sensors.

Main Methods:

• Developed 2D PC hydrogel sensors by immobilizing proteins (HRP and BSA) onto acrylamide hydrogels using an acrylated protein approach.
• Utilized horseradish peroxidase (HRP) immobilized on acrylamide (AAm/HRP) hydrogels for hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) detection.
• Employed bovine serum albumin (BSA) immobilized on acrylamide (AAm/BSA) hydrogels for calcium chloride (CaCl₂) detection.

Main Results:

• AAm/HRP hydrogel sensors exhibited high selectivity, chemical stability for at least 14 weeks, and a limit of detection (LoD) of 3.75 μM for H₂O₂.
• AAm/HRP sensors showed distinct structural color changes with varying H₂O₂ concentrations, enabling colorimetric analysis.
• AAm/BSA hydrogel sensors demonstrated a LoD of 0.79 μM for CaCl₂ and stability exceeding 30 days, highlighting the method's universality.

Conclusions:

• The novel acrylated protein method enables the development of stable and versatile 2D PC hydrogel sensors.
• This approach overcomes limitations of protein type and matrix stability in existing PC protein hydrogel sensors.
• The universal method facilitates the creation of diverse sensors for a wide range of targets, with broad application potential.