Point-of-Care Applicability of Graphene-Based Field Effect Transistors upon Modification with a Pyrene-Tagged Antifouling Copolymer: Application for cTnI Sensing in Blood

Field-effect transistors (FETs) are an integrated part of various electronic products and play an irreplaceable role in modern-day bioelectronics and biosensors. The electronic performance of FET-based sensors is intrinsically correlated with the choice of the sensing layer, with graphene being one of the most widely employed active semiconductor materials through which charge carriers (i.e., electrons or holes) propagate upon bioreceptor-analyte interactions. One of the challenges remaining before widespread practical applications of graphene-based FET (gFET) is linked to its direct operation in blood, as the complex protein environment matrix causes significant issues. Here, we propose a sensitive and rapid detection of cardiac troponin I (cTnI) in unprocessed blood samples by integrating pyrene-tagged antifouling copolymer thin films onto the graphene channel. By leveraging the unique properties of the zwitterionic copolymer composed of <i>N</i>-(2-hydroxypropyl) methacrylamide (HPMAA) and carboxy betaine methacrylamide (CBMAA) in the form of a pyrene-tagged poly[HPMAA-<i>co</i>-CBMAA], we demonstrate excellent signal stability in whole blood, along with the potential for sensitive cTnI sensing in high ionic strength media (1× PBS) upon immobilization of DNA aptamers onto the copolymer network. With a limit of detection of 0.6 ± 0.1 pg mL<sup>-1</sup> and a limit of quantification of 1.8 ± 0.3 pg mL<sup>-1</sup>, the sensor operates well within the clinically relevant cTnI range, demonstrating a significant step forward for cardiovascular biomarker monitoring in physiologically relevant conditions.

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Publication Details

Journal
ACS Sensors
Published
2025-08-25
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1021/acssensors.5c02191
Citations
2
Primary Topic
Neuroscience and Neural Engineering
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
1.82

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article

Point-of-Care Applicability of Graphene-Based Field Effect Transistors upon Modification with a Pyrene-Tagged Antifouling Copolymer: Application for cTnI Sensing in Blood

Christophe Ritzenthaler, Mandana Amiri, Sandro Spagnolo, Eloïse Woitrain et al.
2 citations
ACS Sensors
Neuroscience and Neural Engineering
1.82
article

Point-of-Care Applicability of Graphene-Based Field Effect Transistors upon Modification with a Pyrene-Tagged Antifouling Copolymer: Application for cTnI Sensing in Blood

Christophe Ritzenthaler, Mandana Amiri, Sandro Spagnolo, Eloïse Woitrain, Peter Šiffalovič, E. Majková, Roberto Corradini, Wolfgang Knoll, Adriana Annušová, Tibor Hianik, David Montaigne, Subhankar Sahu, Anna Kálosi, Rabah Boukherroub, Rupali Bagale, Manova Santhosh Yesupatham, H. Happy, Sabine Szunerits, Francesco Basini, Abdellah Hambli
article en
2 citations

Abstract

Field-effect transistors (FETs) are an integrated part of various electronic products and play an irreplaceable role in modern-day bioelectronics and biosensors. The electronic performance of FET-based sensors is intrinsically correlated with the choice of the sensing layer, with graphene being one of the most widely employed active semiconductor materials through which charge carriers (i.e., electrons or holes) propagate upon bioreceptor-analyte interactions. One of the challenges remaining before widespread practical applications of graphene-based FET (gFET) is linked to its direct operation in blood, as the complex protein environment matrix causes significant issues. Here, we propose a sensitive and rapid detection of cardiac troponin I (cTnI) in unprocessed blood samples by integrating pyrene-tagged antifouling copolymer thin films onto the graphene channel. By leveraging the unique properties of the zwitterionic copolymer composed of <i>N</i>-(2-hydroxypropyl) methacrylamide (HPMAA) and carboxy betaine methacrylamide (CBMAA) in the form of a pyrene-tagged poly[HPMAA-<i>co</i>-CBMAA], we demonstrate excellent signal stability in whole blood, along with the potential for sensitive cTnI sensing in high ionic strength media (1× PBS) upon immobilization of DNA aptamers onto the copolymer network. With a limit of detection of 0.6 ± 0.1 pg mL<sup>-1</sup> and a limit of quantification of 1.8 ± 0.3 pg mL<sup>-1</sup>, the sensor operates well within the clinically relevant cTnI range, demonstrating a significant step forward for cardiovascular biomarker monitoring in physiologically relevant conditions.

ACS SensorsVol. 10(9)
University of Parma (IT), Danube Private University (AT), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR), Local Initiatives Support Corporation (US), Institute of Chemistry of the Slovak Academy of Sciences (SK), Inserm (FR), Slovak Academy of Sciences (SK), Université de Lille (FR), Institut Pasteur de Lille (FR), Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Lille (FR), Polymer Institute of the Slovak Academy of Sciences (SK), Institut de Biologie Moléculaire des Plantes (FR), Centre for Advanced Material Application of the Slovak Academy of Sciences (SK), Institut d'Electronique, de Microélectronique et de Nanotechnologie (FR), Institute of Physics of the Slovak Academy of Sciences (SK), Université Polytechnique Hauts-de-France (FR), Comenius University Bratislava (SK)
Université de Lille, European Commission, Fédération Française de Cardiologie, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Agentúra na Podporu Výskumu a Vývoja, Vedecká Grantová Agentúra MŠVVaŠ SR a SAV
Openalex Percentile: Top 14%
Neuroscience and Neural Engineering
1.82
DOISourceOpenAlex
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